** 


GROWTH  AND  EDUCATION 


L  OS 


GROWTH  AND  EDUCATION 


BY  aii. 

JOHN   MASON   TYLER 

Professor  of  Biology  in  Amherst  College 
Author  of  The  Whence  and  the  Whither  of  Man 


1 150  4 


BOSTON    AND    NEW   YORK 

HOUGHTON  MIFFLIN  COMPANY 


rC      1908 


COPYRIGHT   1907   BY  JOHN  MASON  TYLER 
ALL   RIGHTS   RESERVED 


r^7 


PEEFACE 

Some  years  ago  I  became  greatly  interested  in  the  ques- 
tion how  a  child  grows.  Principal  Burk's  monographs 
gave  full  information  concerning  growth  in  height  and 
weight,  and  concerning  some  of  the  most  important 
changes  in  the  nervous  system.  Professor  Donaldson 
had  told  us  of  the  growth  of  the  brain.  Concerning  the 
growth  of  heart,  lungs,  and  other  organs,  I  could  find 
at  first  but  little  information.  I  found  an  abundance 
of  books  concerning  diseases  of  children,  but  not  one 
attempting  to  give  a  complete  account  of  the  growth 
of  all  the  systems  in  the  normal  or  average  child. 

It  looked  as  if  we  had  been  rearing  and  training  our 
children  without  ever  asking  whether  the  child  entering 
school  was  merely  a  small  edition  of  the  adult,  or  some- 
thing quite  different.  We  seemed  to  have  been  attempt- 
ing by  education  at  home  and  at  school  to  supply  the 
child's  needs  without  having  first  asked  what  those  needs 
were,  and  whether  they  differed  slightly  or  greatly  at 
different  ages. 

It  seemed  to  be  of  the  greatest  importance  to  dis- 
cover first  of  all  whether  all  organs  needed  exercise 
equally  at  all  ages,  or  whether  every  organ  had  its  spe- 
cial epoch  or  epochs  when  exercise  was  more  profitable 
than  earlier  or  later.  In  the  latter  case  we  needed  to 
know  what  organs  at  every  epoch  most  needed  exercise, 
and  of  what  kind  and  amount.  Furthermore,  it  would 
be  useful  to  parents  and  teachers  to  know  whether 


vi  PREFACE 

children  and  youth  have  the  same  or  steadily  increas- 
ing vigor,  endurance,  and  power  of  resisting  disease  or 
adverse  conditions  at  all  ages,  or  whether  there  are 
periods  of  less  power  of  resistance,  when  leniency  and 
care  are  necessary. 

Later  I  became  surprised  at  the  large  amount  of 
material  concerning  the  growth  of  different  organs  and 
systems  which  is  scattered  through  medical  and  other 
journals  or  in  separate  monographs.  The  chapters  in 
this  volume  on  the  growth  of  the  child  are  based  on 
a  large  amount  of  this  material  arranged  and  tabulated. 
At  first  I  intended  to  publish  the  tables  as  an  appendix 
in  this  volume.  But  I  preferred  to  defer  their  publica- 
tion until  I  had  gathered  much  more  material  and  had 
gained  answers  to  certain  important  but  difficult  ques- 
tions. 

I  have  taken  for  granted  the  often  forgotten  or 
neglected  axiom  that  a  healthy  physical  growth  and 
development  are  during  childhood  more  important  than 
any  amount  of  learning.  In  the  first  chapter  I  have 
tried  to  show  that  physical  training  and  education  are 
more  needed  to-day  than  ever  before.  The  facts  of 
human  evolution,  briefly  discussed  in  the  second  chap- 
ter, seem  to  prove  that,  until  the  human  stage  is  fully 
attained,  the  muscular  system  is  the  head  and  the  stra- 
tegic centre  of  development  rather  than  the  brain.  In 
other  words,  the  brain  is  developed  through  the  exercise 
of  the  sense-organs  and  the  muscles  rather  than  these 
through  the  training  of  the  brain.  In  this  respect  the 
young  child  resembles  the  animal.  If  the  higher  mental 
powers  of  the  brain  do  not  awaken  until  the  eleventh 
or  twelfth  year,  it  is  of  little  use  to  attempt  to  train 
them  before  this  time.  If,  during  all  these  earlier  years, 


PREFACE  vn 

the  muscles  are  needing  and  craving  exercise,  we  cer- 
tainly should  do  well  to  meet  and  satisfy  these  needs. 

The  balance  of  organs  in  the  child's  body,  in  other 
words  his  constitution  in  the  literal  derivative  sense,  is 
quite  different  at  different  epochs.  The  great  mental 
changes  during  youth  and  early  manhood  are  familiar 
to  us  all.  The  physical  changes  during  childhood  and 
early  youth  are  equally  great,  but  often  pass  unnoticed 
or  but  poorly  understood.  Yet  these  physical  changes 
modify  or  cause  certain  traits  in  the  child.  What  ap- 
pears to  us  carelessness  or  clownishness  in  gait  or 
behavior  may  be  due  to  immature  muscles.  Poor  eye- 
sight and  defective  hearing  often  cause  the  child  to 
be  considered  stupid.  The  young  girl  is  often  blamed 
for  lack  of  application  when  the  real  cause  of  her  poor 
success  in  school  work  is  lack  of  outdoor  exercise  and 
of  sufficient  lung  capacity. 

We  wisely  desire  that  our  children  should  form  right 
habits  of  physical,  mental,  and  moral  behavior.  This 
is  well.  But  let  us  not  forget  that  the  child  must  think 
and  act  as  a  child.  Most  of  his  childish  instincts  and 
cravings  are  wise  and  healthy,  even  though  they  appear 
rude  and  unsatisfactory  to  us.  What  appears  faulty, 
when  judged  by  adult  standards,  may  be  normal,  natu- 
ral, and  beneficent  in  the  child.  Many  of  his  failings 
are  due  to  immaturity,  and  he  will  outgrow  them  of 
himself  in  due  time.  We  need  to  learn  when  not  to 
notice,  as  well  as  when  and  how  to  correct.  The  parent 
who  knows  and  understands  the  laws  of  growth  will 
have  more  faith,  hope,  and  courage,  and  will  be  spared 
much  needless  anxiety. 

When  one  has  studied  the  different  epochs  of  child 
life,  he  cannot  fail  to  see  how  admirably  the  life  on 


viii  PREFACE 

the  New  England  farm  a  half-century  ago  was  fitted 
to  promote  physical  and  mental  growth  and  develop- 
ment. The  debt  of  New  England  to  the  farm  has  never 
been  duly  recognized.  The  preponderance  of  town  and 
city,  and  the  changes  in  farm  life,  have  resulted  in  the 
loss  of  certain  elements  of  the  education  of  our  fathers 
which  we  can  very  ill  afford  to  spare.  These  losses 
have  greatly  decreased  the  efficiency  of  the  home  in 
education,  and  have  thrown  a  far  heavier  burden  of 
responsibilitj'  on  the  school.  Hence  our  education  is 
often  criticised  as  unpractical  and  not  suited  to  fit  boys 
and  girls  for  life.  The  present  condition  is  certainly 
not  the  fault  of  the  teachers,  nor  altogether  that  of  the 
parents.  New  burdens  have  been  thrown  upon  the  school 
almost  without  warning.  The  educator  has  to  face  new 
and  very  difficult  problems.  Our  present  system  has  not 
been  able  to  reform  and  change  front  quickly  enough  to 
meet  the  new  emergency.  But  the  emergency  must  be 
met,  and  it  will  be  met  mainly  by  the  school.  Hence 
parents  and  teachers  need  to  know  and  understand  one 
another ;  and  to  work  in  harmony,  unison,  and  mutual 
help  and  support. 

This  book  is  intended  to  be  an  introduction  to  the  study 
of  the  growth  of  the  child.  Hence  the  most  important 
part  of  it  is  the  bibliography.  If  I  can  introduce  teach- 
ers and  parents  to  the  monographs  and  articles  cited,  I 
shall  surely  have  done  them  a  service.  I  have  attempted 
to  select  articles  which  are  accessible,  accurate,  and 
trustworthy,  and  not  too  technical.  I  am  well  aware  of 
the  incompleteness  of  the  bibliography.  Much  of  what- 
ever excellence  it  may  possess  is  due  to  the  great  kind- 
ness and  patience  of  Dr.  Louis  N.  Wilson,  Librarian  of 
Clark  University.     I   am   under   great   obligation   to 


PREFACE  ix 

him  and  his  assistants  for  many  services  and  acts  of 
kindness. 

I  wish  to  express  my  thanks  to  President  G.  Stanley 
Hall  for  many  helpful  suggestions  and  for  his  unfailing 
kindness  and  encouragement.  I  am  under  great  obliga- 
tion to  Drs.  Hitchcock,  Holt,  Porter,  Hastings,  and 
Hall,  for  permission  to  use  the  material  in  the  tables. 
I  wish  to  thank  Dr.  E.  M.  Hartwell  for  permission  to  use 
his  table  of  mortality  of  Boston  children.  Part  of  the 
material  has  been  used  in  lectures  in  Boston,  under 
the  auspices  of  the  Committee  of  Education  of  the 
Twentieth  Century  Club.  To  them  I  am  very  grateful 
for  a  great  opportunity  and  for  many  kindnesses. 

J.  M.  T. 

Amhebst,  Massachusetts,  1907. 


CONTENTS 

CHAPTER  I 

Present  Needs  in  Education 

Systems  of  education  must  be  suited  to  needs  of  place  and  time. 
New  England  a  century  ago.  Farm-work  in  the  open  air.  Educa- 
tion on  the  farm.  New  England  to-day.  Cities.  Sedentary  life. 
Wealth  and  class  distinctions.  Need  of  physical  and  moral  vigor. 
The  man  of  power 1 

CHAPTER  II 

Man  in  the  Light  of  Evolution 

Complexity  of  the  human  body.  Stages  in  its  development : 
protozoan,  zoophytic,  animal,  human.  Complexity  of  muscular 
system,  and  effects  of  its  development.  Development  of  nervous 
system  :  cerebellum,  midbrain,  cortex,  Flechsig's  association  areas. 
Use  of  nervous  system.  Practical  considerations  and  results  .     .      25 

CHAPTER  III 

Hints  from  Embryology 

Development  of  the  chicken.  Nature's  "blunders."  Metamor- 
phosis. Provisional  structures.  Instincts.  Three  stages  of  growth 
of  every  organ.  The  craving  for  exercise.  Interests.  Embryotic 
recapitulation  of  racial  development 49 

CHAPTER  IV 

Growth  in  Weight  and  Height 

Growth  in  weight  of  males  and  females.  Growth  in  height. 
Chest-girth.  Rhythms  of  growth.   Proportions  of  the  body  ...      63 


xii  CONTENTS 

CHAPTER  V 

Growth  of  the  Neuro-Muscular  System 

Absolute  and  relative  weight  of  muscles  at  different  ages. 
Weight  of  different  groups  of  muscles.  Ratio  of  strength  of  fore- 
arm to  area  of  cross-section.  Growth  of  the  brain.  Development 
and  maturing  of  nerve-cells.  Order  of  development  of  parts.  Suc- 
cession of  interests 69 

CHAPTER  VI 

Growth  of  the  Visceral  Organs 

Digestive  System.  Liver.  Kidneys.  Heart  and  arteries.  Lungs  : 
weight  and  capacity.  Metabolism  in  child  and  adult.  Amount  of 
food  required  at  different  ages.  Amount  of  oxygen  used,  and  of 
energy  produced.   Use  of  material  for  growth 81 

CHAPTER  VII 

Mortality  and  Morbidity 

Mortality  at  different  ages.  Morbidity  in  Denmark,  Sweden, 
and  Germany,  in  boys  and  girls.  Overpressure  and  fatigue    ...      92 

CHAPTER  VIII 

Constitution  and  Periods  of  Life 

Constitution  as  inherited ;  as  the  result  of  the  size  and  balance  of 
organs.  Differences  in  constitution  at  different  ages.  Periods  of 
life.  Infancy  and  adolescence.  Periods  of  transition  and  of  pre- 
paration. Nature's  tests  and  examinations.  The  pubertal  meta- 
morphosis.  Triennial  epochs 104 

CHAPTER  IX  J 

The  First  Three  Years  of  the  Child's  Life 

Size  and  growth  of  infant.  Surface  and  mass.  Sensitiveness  to 
cold.  Metabolism.  Need  of  food,  air,  sunshine,  sleep.  Mortality. 
Constitution.   Training  of  nervous  system 115 


CONTENTS  xiii 

V 

CHAPTER  X 

The  Kindergarten  Period 

Size  and  growth  of  child.  Metabolism.  Food.  Mortality.  Mor- 
bidity. A  sensory  period  ;  but  heavy  muscles  crave  exercise.  Plays. 
Content  of  mind.   Sensory  training: 129 


CHAPTER  XI  / 

V 
The  Child  entering  School 

Size  and  growth.  Heart.  Constitution.  Mortality  and  mor- 
bidity. Preparation  for  pubertal  metamorphosis.  Interests. 
Weakness  and  discouragement.  Training  suited  to  epoch.  Learn- 
ing by  imitation.  Habits.  Feelings.  Importance  of  epoch.  Stories. 
Effects  of  school  life.  The  epoch  viewed  from  the  standpoint  of 
racial  development 139 


CHAPTER  XII 

The  Girl  and  the  Boy  in  the  Grammar  Grades 

Size  and  growth.  Retardation.  Acceleration  of  increase  in 
height.  Readjustment  and  increase  in  height  an  expensive  process. 
Relative  small  size  of  trunk.  Pubertal  metamorphosis:  its  vital 
importance.  Waste  and  its  removal.  Importance  of  lung  capacity. 
Modern  conditions  and  the  health  of  the  girl.  Her  small  vital  ca- 
pacity and  its  increase  through  exercise.  Lack  of  play  and  games. 
School  life.  Preparation  for  college.  Home  life.  Changes  needed. 
A  plea  for  mercy 156 

CHAPTER  XIII 

The  Boy  and  the  Girl  in  the  High  School 

Size  and  development.  Mortality  and  morbidity.  Constitution : 
its  effect  upon  mind  and  character.  Period  of  instability  and  of 
mental  metamorphosis.  Reign  of  the  heart.  Ethics.  Religions 
development.  The  new  life.  Examinations  for  entrance  to  college. 
Methods  of  teaching.  Character  building.  Hero-worship.  The 
"  everlasting  miracle  " 179 

CHAPTER  XIV 

Physical  Training  —  Place  of  Play  in  Education 

Physical  training  needed  at  all  periods  for  growth  and  develop- 


CONTENTS 


*# 


ment.  An  essential  part  of  school  work.    Effect  upon 

School  gardens.   The  play  instinct.     Classification  of 

games;   their  hygienic  value.   Mental,  social,  and  moral 'training 

through  games.   Friendships  of  the  play-ground.   Habits  of  study. 

Locke  and  others  concerning  play.   Teachers  and  play.   Athletics.     198 


CHAPTER  XV 

Physical  Training  —  Gymnastics 

Meaning  and  purpose  of  gymnastics.  Need.  Hygienic  gym- 
nastics. Effects.  Gymnastics  in  the  school-room.  Anthropometry 
in  the  school 218 


CHAPTER   XVI 

Manual  Training 

Manual  training  as  brain  training.  Suited  to  all  classes  of  so- 
ciety. Laboratory  work.  Effect  upon  will.  Practical  advantages. 
Needed  by  girl  and  boy  who  go  to  college.  Respect  for  handcraft. 
The  boy  who  does  not  take  to  books.  Industrial  training.  Manual 
training  needed  by  girls 228 


CHAPTER  XVII 

Retrospect  and  Summary 

Health  a  necessity.  Vital  organs  and  muscles.  Growth  the 
business  of  the  young  child ;  education  must  promote  and  not 
hinder  it.  Physical  training  essential  in  lower  grades,  but  needed 
in  higher  also.  Effect  of  loss  of  farm  life  on  education.  Criticisms 
of  present  system.  Physical  training  and  mental  ability.  Develop- 
ment of  the  will.  Need  of  change  of  emphasis  in  present  system, 
not  of  a  revolution.  Advantages  of  change.  Hindrances  :  thought- 
lessness, conservatism,  the  friends  of  learning.  Our  failure  to 
appreciate  that  changed  conditions  demand  corresponding  changes 
in  our  system  of  education.    Cooperation  between  parents  and  school    242 

Appendix 261 

A.  Tables 263 

B.  Bibliography 271 

Index 293 


GROWTH  AND  EDUCATION 


CHAPTER  I 

PRESENT   NEEDS    IN   EDUCATION 

It  was  a  favorite  maxim  of  Socrates  that,  if  a  thing  is 
good,  it  surely  must  be  good  for  something.)  What  is 
an  education  good  for  ?  This  much-abused"" word  has 
been  used  in  many  senses.  Its  definitions  vary  greatly. 
Higher  mammals  were  educated  by  their  parents  before 
man  appeared  on  the  globe.  The  lowest  savage  tribes 
educate  their  children,  and  their  systems  of  education 
are  often  interesting  and  instructive.  Great  thinkers 
from  the  most  remote  times  have  written  on  the  sub- 
ject. But  we  are  still  disputing  over  definitions,  and 
the  ideal  system  has  not  yet  been  discovered. 

What  we  most  need  is  not  so  much  a  complete, 
accurate  definition,  as  some  criterion  by  which  we  can 
test  our  present  systems  and  methods,  and  see  whether 
they  are  accomplishing  all  that  we  can  reasonably 
expect  from  them.  Our  test  must  be  one  which  can 
be  easily  and  readily  applied,  if  it  is  to  be  of  practical 
use.  This  thought  of  Socrates,  that  a  good  thing  must 
be  good  for  something,  may,  perhaps,  furnish  us  a 
standpoint  from  which  we  may  wisely  view  our  present 
systems,  and  seek  to  discover  possible  improvements. 

If  any  one  could  discover  or  frame  a  system  of  educa- 
tion which  would  enable  the  child  and  the  man  to  avoid 
or  to  cope  with  the  dangers  of  life,  and  to  seize  its 


2  GROWTH  AND  EDUCATION 

opportunities;  in  one  word,  to  meet  its  emergencies 
successfully,  he  would  evidently  render  us  a  great 
service.  Such  a  system  would  be  exceedingly  useful. 
Seizing  the  opportunities  of  life  means  making  the 
most  of  ourselves  physically,  mentally,  and  morally ; 
it  implies  health,  vigor,  and  power;  knowledge  and 
wisdom ;  goodness  and  love ;  use,  service,  and  the 
highest  joy.  It  means  making  the  most  and  best  of 
this  goodly  world  in  which  we  live,  and  framing  from 
our  surroundings  an  environment  to  which  we  may 
wisely  conform,  and  hence  survive  and  progress.  Op- 
portunity is  limitless ;  we  fail  to  recognize  and  grasp  it. 

But  the  dangers  and  opportunities,  in  one  word  the 
emergencies,  of  state  and  individual  are  not  the  same 
in  different  places  and  times.  Every  state  frames  its 
system  of  education  to  meet  its  own  dangers  and  to 
grasp  its  special  opportunities,  and  to  enable  its  citi- 
zens to  do  the  same.  The  dangers  of  the  German 
state  and  citizen  are  evidently  not  the  same  as  ours. 
A  nation  in  the  middle  of  Europe,  with  few  natural- 
boundaries  and  surrounded  by  warlike  neighbors,  has 
dangers  which  we  find  it  hard  to  appreciate.  Differ- 
ences in  soil,  climate,  and  natural  advantages,  in  gov- 
ernment, traditions,  and  social  conditions,  give  to  the 
individual  citizen  opportunities  and  emergencies  differ- 
ent from  ours.  Hence  a  system  of  education  which 
would  be  exactly  suited  to  German  needs  would  not 
suit  American  conditions.  We  may  learn  much  from 
the  German,  and  he  from  us ;  but  neither  one  of  us 
can  safely  copy  the  other.  We  have  our  own  dangers 
and  opportunities,  and  must  meet  them  as  best  we  may. 

Similarly  a  system  of  education  suited  to  the  needs 
of  one  period  of  our  national  development  will  natu- 


PRESENT  NEEDS  IN  EDUCATION  3 

rally  be  inadequate  when  conditions  have  changed  to 
any  great  extent.  In  the  eighteenth  century  New  Eng- 
land was  peopled  with  a  comparatively  homogeneous 
English  stock.  It  was  as  vigorous,  sturdy,  and  tough 
a  race  as  the  world  has  ever  seen.  English  climate  and 
conditions  had  given  it  marvelous  strength  and  endur- 
ance. The  boldest  and  most  vigorous  had  been  sifted 
out  for  the  planting  of  the  New  AVorld.  It  was  leading 
an  agricultural  life,  of  manual  labor,  largely  in  the 
open  air  of  the  country.  The  birth-rate  was  very  high, 
and  the  population  increased  with  marvelous  rapidity.1 
The  transfer  of  the  somewhat  heavy  English  Puritan 
stock  to  the  nerve-tonic  of  our  bracing  air,  new  condi- 
tions and  emergencies,  and  the  spur  of  necessity,  had 
roused  all  the  mental  powers  of  this  marvelous  people. 
They  were  keen,  quick,  shrewd,  inventive. 

They  were  scattered  in  small  towns  and  villages,  each 
one  of  which  was  more  remote  from  its  nearest  neigh- 
bor  than  is  New  York  from  Boston  or  Chicago  to-day. 
Every  village  was  fringed  with  farms  scattered  over  the 
hills,  wherever  a  man  could  wring  a  living  from  the  soil 
between  the  ledges.  Wealth  and  luxury  were  almost 
unknown,  the  farms  furnished  the  necessities  of  life. 
Behind  them  stretched  the  wilderness,  tempting  the  ad- 
venturous as  well  as  the  shiftless  to  a  life  of  barbarism, 
if  not  of  savagery.  Educated  men  were  rare,  books  few 
and  expensive.  No  wonder  that  the  first  settlers  feared 
that  learning  would  be  buried  in  the  graves  of  their 
ministers.  Illiteracy  and  barbarism  were  very  real  dag- 
gers in  those  days  ;  from  wealth,  luxury,  and  the  evils 
of  overcrowding  they  had  little  to  fear. 

The  stress  and  strain  of  life  bore  heaviest  on  the 

1  Walker,  "Restriction  of  Immigration,"  Atlantic,  vol.  lxxvii,  1896. 


jmi  :*  *,     -- 


4  GROWTH  AND  EDUCATION 

tough  muscular  system.  This  rested  and  recovered 
quickly,  for  the  sleep  of  the  laboring  man  was  sweet. 
There  was  little  competition.  Life  was  simple,  often 
very  monotonous.  Even  an  Indian  raid  must  have  been 
a  welcome  change.  Opportunities  were  few.  Children 
looked  forward  to  the  time  when  they  would  clear  a 
farm,  and  establish  a  household,  as  their  fathers  had 
done  before  them. 

These  Puritan  ancestors  of  ours  were  not  all  saints. 
They  often  drank  heavily,  quarreled  outrageously,  and 
varied  the  monotony  of  respectability  by  the  rudest 
outbursts  of  animal,  if  not  beastly,  tendencies.  Even 
their  wit  and  jokes  were  often  cruel.  Those  who  dis- 
agreed with  them  were  summarily  banished.  Life  is 
certainly  much  pleasanter  in  the  twentieth  century. 

Education  was  gained  mostly  at  home.  In  the  large 
families  the  children  educated  one  another.  The  farm 
offered  more  opportunities  for  physical  exercise  than 
the  child  or  boy  wished.  His  labor  was  needed;  "he 
was  a  member  of  the  firm."  When  the  forest  had  been 
cleared,  the  stumps  burned  or  uprooted,  and  the  walls 
built,  there  were  endless  jobs  for  him.  Stones  had  to 
be  picked  up,  and  every  plowing  brought  up  a  new 
crop.  The  animals  had  to  be  cared  for,  wood  and  kind- 
lings had  to  be  provided  daily.  All  the  light  work  fell 
upon  the  children.  Very  early  they  shared,  as  far  as 
possible,  the  labor  of  the  adults.  Nature  study  was 
forced  upon  them. 

»   The  farm  was  a  hive  or  laboratory  of  manual  train- 
ing.1   The  farmer  and  his  boys  had  to  be  carpenters, 

1  Hall,  "  Boy-Life  in  a  Country  Town  a  Quarter  of  a  Century  Ago," 
Proc.  Am.  Ant.  Soc,  Worcester,  October,  1890 ;  Abstract  in  Ped.  Sem. 
i,  232 ;  Bailey,  Outlook  to  Nature,  p.  154. 


PRESENT  NEEDS  IN  EDUCATION  5 

cabinet-makers,  blacksmiths,  wood-turners,  chair-seaters, 
basket-makers,  all  at  once.  There  was  hardly  a  trade 
or  handicraft  of  which  they  did  not  have  some  experi- 
ence, responsibility  fell  upon  them  early,  and  they 
had  to  meet  countless  emergencies  as  best  they  could. 
Necessity  was  the  mother  of  invention.  The  girls  did 
housework,  spun  and  wove ;  made  butter  and  cheese ; 
learned  to  dye,  and  bake,  and  brew.  They  were  often 
as  good  farmers  as  their  brothers.  Boys  and  girls  had 
to  make  their  own  playthings,  as  well  as  a  host  of  other 
things  for  the  whole  family. 

President  Hall1  in  his  article  on  Moral  Education 
has  well  said:  "Ten  days  at  the  hoe-handle,  axe,  or 
pitchfork,  as  an  eminent  educator  has  said  in  sub- 
stance, with  no  new  impression  from  without  and  one 
constant  and  only  duty,  is  a  schooling  in  perseverance 
and  sustained  effort  such  as  few  boys  now  get  in  any 
shape." 

The  child  saw  but  few  books  at  home.  The  Bible 
was  the  usual  library,  with  one  or  two  volumes  of  ser- 
mons, and  perhaps  "Pilgrim's  Progress"  for  fiction. 
A  book  was  a  rarity  and  a  treasure.  Learning  was  pos- 
sible only  for  the  very  few.  The  child  respected  and 
coveted  it  as  much  as  his  father  or  mother  did.  The 
very  best  use  of  the  few  weeks  spent  in  school  was  to 
devote  it  wholly  to  book-study.  It  is  very  unfortunate 
that  so  well-balanced,  wise,  and  practical  a  system  of 
education  is  no  longer  possible. 

The  dangers  and  opportunities  of  the  twentieth  cen- 
tury are  quite  other  than  those  of  the  eighteenth.  Mr. 
Gladstone2  estimated  that  as   much  real  wealth  was 

i  Hall,  "  Moral  Education  and  Will-Training,"  Ped.  Sem.  ii,  73. 
2  Loomis,  Modern  Cities,  p.  43. 


6  GROWTH   AND   EDUCATION 

produced  during  the  first  half  of  the  nineteenth  cen- 
tury as  during  the  preceding  eighteen  hundred  years. 
An  equal  amount  was  produced  during  the  next  quar- 
ter-century. Probably  quite  as  much  has  been  added 
since  1875.  Between  1860  and  1880  the  wealth  of 
the  United  States  increased  three  times  as  fast  as  its 
population. 

As  wealth  increases,  men  are  no  longer  content  with 
food  and  raiment.  There  is  a  steadily  increasing  de- 
mand for  manufactured  articles,  and  more  money  for 
their  purchase.  Hence  the  growth  of  factories,  the 
crowding  of  population  in  manufacturing  centres,  and 
the  consequent  dangers  to  health  and  morals. 

New  means  of  communication  have  made  the  fertile 
prairies  accessible,  agricultural  tools  and  machinery 
have  been  invented  or  improved.  It  has  been  esti- 
mated that  the  average  farmer  with  horses  can  do  with 
three  men  the  work  formerly  done  by  fourteen,  and 
can  do  it  better.  The  Eastern  farmer  cannot  compete 
with  his  Western  brother.  This  means  displacement  of 
population  on  a  grand  scale.  The  people,  especially  the 
energetic,  ambitious,  and  strongest  intellectually,  pour 
from  the  country  into  the  city. 

President  Carroll  D.  Wright *  tells  us  that  between 
1790  and  1880  the  population  of  the  United  States 
increased  about  sixteen-fold ;  the  population  of  cities 
and  towns  having  more  than  8000  inhabitants  increased 
almost  140-fold.  In  1790  about  one  thirty-third  of  the 
population  lived  in  such  towns  and  cities;  in  1890 
about  one  third.  In  1890  there  were  about  seventy-five 
times  as  many  towns  and  cities  as  in  1790.  In  1870 
there  were  fourteen  cities  having  more  than  100,000 

1  Wright,  ' ;  Lessons  from  the  Census,"  Pop.  Sci.  Mo. ,  xlvi,  459. 


PRESENT  NEEDS  IN  EDUCATION  7 

inhabitants;  in  1880,  twenty;  in  1890,  twenty-eight. 
More  than  one  half  of  the  population  of  the  North 
Atlantic  States  live  in  towns  or  cities.  In  some  or 
most  of  these  states  the  rural  population  has  actually 
decreased. 

The  great  city,  with  its  vast  opportunities  for  good 
and  evil,  its  wealth  and  luxury,  its  poverty  and  misery, 
its  vice  and  crime,  with  its  heterogeneous  population, 
and  contrasts  of  race,  creed,  class,  and  condition,  has 
confronted  us  suddenly  with  its  almost  insoluble  pro- 
blems. Life  in  a  great  city  has  its  advantages,  but  the 
poor  are  many,  and  their  condition  is  often  sad 
enough. 

Read  the  report  of  the  Council  of  Hygiene  to  the 
Citizens'  Association  as  to  the  sanitary  condition  of 
the  tenements  of  the  city  of  New  York  in  1867. ■  It 
speaks  of  them  as  rapidly  becoming  the  "  nests  of  fever 
and  infection,  and  the  poisonous  abodes  of  physical 
decay."  The  Tenement  House  Commission  of  1900 
reports  that  the  present  type  of  tenement  gives  to  its 
occupants  less  light  and  less  ventilation,  less  fire  pro- 
tection and  less  comfortable  surroundings  than  the  aver- 
age tenement  of  fifty  years  ago.2  The  air  of  the  great 
city  is  spoiled  by  smoke,  decay,  and  germs ;  sunshine 
is  kept  out  of  the  deep  and  narrow  streets,  soil  and 
ground  water  are  polluted.  No  wonder  that  the  death- 
rate  of  London  rises  alarmingly  when  fogs  blanket  the 
city.  No  wonder  that  the  death-rate  from  consumption 
for  the  state  of  New  York  was  not  far  from  twice  as 
great  in  cities  of  over  25,000  inhabitants  as  in  the  rest 

1  Loomis,  Modern  Cities,  p.  36. 

2  First  Report  of  the  Tenement  House  Department  of  the  City  of  New 
York,  pp.  5,  6. 


8  GROWTH  AND  EDUCATION 

of  the  state.1  Let  us  not  forget  that  consumption  is 
not  merely  a  death-scourge,  but  a  symptom  of  bad 
heredity  and  surroundings,  and  of  weak  constitution. 
There  is  some  reason  to  fear  that  cities  having  a 
population  of  50,000  to  100,000  inhabitants  are  less 
healthy  than  the  largest.  They  appear  to  have  over- 
stepped the  danger  limit  in  size  without  having  yet 
taken  proper  sanitary  precautions. 

How  many  children  go  to  school  breakfastless,  or  at 
least  hungry  ?  Mr.  Hunter  guesses  50,000  in  New  York 
City.  Let  us  hope  and  cheerfully  assume  that  he  has 
greatly  exaggerated  the  number.  It  is  a  fair-sized  army 
in  one  city  alone.  A  parliamentary  committee  reports 
even  worse  conditions  in  manufacturing  cities  in  Eng- 
land. These  children  grow  up  weak,  stunted,  inefficient, 
hopeless.  They  fill  our  poor-houses,  reformatories,  and 
jails.  They  become  the  derelicts  of  society.  They  will 
have  children  like  themselves,  or  weaker. 

But  the  poor  are  not  the  only  sufferers.  The  great 
middle  class  is  in  some  respects  at  a  still  greater  dis- 
advantage. The  children  of  the  poor  play  in  the  streets. 
The  child  of  the  middle  class  is  usually  not  allowed 
this  advantage.  He  finds  very  little  useful  employment 
or  exercise.  He  is  almost  entirely  deprived  of  active 
and  vigorous  play  of  work  in  the  open  air  during  the 
years  when  he  most  needs  these  opportunities. 

It  is  a  fact  beyond  all  doubt  that  a  very  large  frac- 
tion of  our  population  has  exchanged  rural  for  urban 
life  during  the  last  two  generations.  It  is  equally  indis- 
putable that,  as  fast  as  we  can,  we  are  exchanging  a  life 
of  muscular  effort  in  the  open  air  for  one  of  brain-work 
indoors.    We  avoid  manual  labor.    The  farms  are  de- 

1  Handbook  of  Prevention  of  Tuberculosis,  p.  74. 


PRESENT  NEEDS  IN  EDUCATION  9 

serted ;  store,  office,  and  desks  are  crowded.  Operatives 
in  our  factories  object  to  having  their  children  receive 
manual  training ;  they  wish  them  to  gain  accomplish- 
ments which  will  fit  them  for  business  or  professional 
life.    We  can  hardly  blame  them. 

We  have  exchanged  a  life  of  simplicity  and  monotony 
for  one  of  great  variety  and  complexity.  The  strain, 
which  used  to  be  mainly  muscular,  now  rests  heaviest 
on  the  youngest  and  most  delicate  portions  of  the 
nervous  system.  This  strain  is  very  severe.  Professor 
Huxley  has  well  said  that  the  struggle  for  comfort  is 
far  more  cruel  than  the  struggle  for  existence.  Com- 
petition and  a  feverish  longing  for  wealth  and  luxury, 
accompanied  by  discontent,  fret,  and  worry,  diminish 
the  joy  and  increase  the  wear  of  work.  Such  a  revolu- 
tion in  our  habits  and  conditions  of  life  affects  the 
balance  and  working  of  all  our  organs. 

Dr.  Baxter,1  in  his  report  of  the  Provost-Marshal- 
General's  Bureau,  tells  us  that  nearly  three  fourths  of 
all  the  teachers  examined  as  to  their  fitness  for  military 
service  in  the  War  of  the  Rebellion  were  rejected  as 
unfit ;  of  physicians  and  clergymen,  two  thirds ;  of 
laborers  and  farmers,  one  third.  There  is,  he  continues, 
a  steady  increase  of  disease  as  we  ascend  the  so-called 
social  scale  from  the  man  who  works  with  his  heavy 
muscles  only  to  those  who  rely  on  cerebral  to  the  prac- 
tical exclusion  of  muscular  work.  Even  if  the  profes- 
sion is  the  refuge  of  the  weak,  as  Dr.  Baxter  suggests, 
and  not  the  cause  of  their  weakness,  the  child  of  the 
professional  man  is  in  danger,  at  least,  of  inheriting  a 
low  tone  of  vitality. 

1  Baxter,  Medical  Statistics  of  the  Provost-Marshal-General's  Bureau, 
i,  chart  xxxiv. 


10  GROWTH  AND   EDUCATION 

It  seems  clear  that  nervousness  in  the  sense  of  nerv- 
ous weakness  or  fatigue,  or  of  lack  of  nervous  strength 
and  endurance,  has  iu creased  rapidly  during  the  last 
half-century.1  As  Beard  has  shown,  its  cause  is  modern 
civilization  with  its  haste,  worry,  and  strain  upon  the 
highest,  finest,  and  weakest  brain  centres.  Supple- 
mentary causes  are  a  dry,  bracing  climate,  and  our 
social,  political,  and  religious  institutions  and  habits. 

The  signs  of  this  increasing  weakness,  or  of  decrease 
of  resisting  power,  are  clear  and  many.  We  cannot 
endure  the  amount  of  alcoholic  drinks,  narcotics,  drugs, 
or  excesses  which  our  ancestors  tolerated.  Sensitive- 
ness to  heat  and  cold,  insomnia  and  early  breakdown, 
premature  baldness,  point  in  the  same  direction.  Even 
the  fine,  "  chiseled "  features  and  the  quick,  mobile 
play  of  expression  of  our  American  girls  are  signs  of 
a  dangerously  sensitive  nervous  system.  Thus  Beard 
argues,  and  there  is  certainly  some  ground  for  his  con- 
clusions. 

But  it  is  very  probable  that  the  nervous  system  is 
affected  by  sedentary  life  to  a  large  extent  indirectly 
through  the  weakening  of  the  digestive  and  assimilat- 
ive powers.  The  sedentary  man  or  woman  can  digest 
only  the  lightest  food.  The  essential  fats  are  almost 
tabooed ;  pork  is  fast  becoming  intolerable.  Without 
abundant  air  and  exercise  a  sound  digestion  is,  of 
course,  impossible.  We  crave  concentrated  and  stimu- 
lating foods,  especially  the  albuminoids  of  meat.  The 
excess  of  albumen  brings  a  heavy  strain  on  the  kidneys, 
and  they  weaken  and  become  diseased.  The  incom- 
pletely digested  food  ferments  in  the  alimentary  canal, 
and  the  whole  body,  especially  the  brain,  is  poisoned  or 

1  Beard,  American  Nervousness. 


PRESENT  NEEDS  IN  EDUCATION  11 

depressed.  Sedentary  workers  suffer  greatly  from  con- 
stipation, which  leads  to  similar  results.  Hence  the 
commonness  of  nervous  dyspepsia,  a  double  root  of 
every  sort  of  evil  and  mischief.  With  such  conditions 
and  modes  of  life,  anything  very  different  is  hardly  to 
be  expected. 

Heart,  lungs,  and  kidneys  owe  their  development 
and  present  power  to  the  demands  and  stimuli  of  the 
muscular  system ;  and  these  stimuli  greatly  increase 
the  efficiency  of  our  digestive  and  assimilative  tissues. 
It  was  sensation  and  motion,  not  thought  or  learning, 
which  laid  the  foundations  of  the  brain,  and  stimulated 
the  development  of  all  its  centres.  Our  internal  organs 
can  and  will  respond  to  all  reasonable  demands  of  our 
muscular  system.  It  is  an  inherited  habit.  They  re- 
quire these  customary  motor  stimuli  to  maintain  them 
in  their  best  condition.  Without  them,  as  in  sedentary 
life,  they  degenerate,  and  invite,  if  they  do  not  pro- 
duce, disease. 

The  death-rate  does  not  rise  proportionally  to  the 
increase  of  morbidity.  Neurasthenics  are  exceedingly 
cautious  and  careful  of  themselves.  They  generally 
^xist  through  a  long  period  of  invalidism.  The  case  of 
the  nervous  dyspeptic  is  similar  in  a  less  degree.  But 
it  is  not  the  kind  of  long  life  which  we  desire  for  our- 
selves or  for  our  children. 

A  second  fact  demands  our  careful  consideration. 
The  higher  we  ascend  in  the  social  scale,  the  greater 
is  the  sensitiveness  to  pain.  What  is  actually  painful 
to  the  professional  man  is  hardly  more  than  disagree- 
able to  the  laborer.  Rosenbach  and  other  good  physi- 
ologists maintain  that  this  sensitiveness  is  increased,  if 
it  may  not  be  caused,  by  lack  of  motor  exercise.    This 


12  GROWTH   AND   EDUCATION 

hypersensitiveness  tends  to  produce  timidity  and  hesi- 
tation, and  is  a  most  important  causal  factor  in  hysteria 
and  similar  weaknesses,  as  well  as  a  symptom  and  re- 
sult of  the  lower  tone  of  vitality  throughout  the  body. 
A  good  physiologist  has  well  said:  "Health  comes 
in  through  the  muscles,  and  flies  out  through  the 
nerves." 

It  is  universally  admitted,  I  believe,  that  sedentary, 
indoor  life,  especially  if  accompanied  by  excessive  men- 
tal labor,  acting  upon  any  except  the  very  strongest 
nervous  system  is  likely  to  result  in  general  weakness, 
probably  manifesting  itself  largely  through  the  nervous 
system ;  and  that  the  cure  for  this  condition  is  to  be 
sought  in  rest,  open  air  and  sunshine,  in  muscular 
exercise  suited  to  the  patient's  powers,  and  in  escape 
from  the  worry  which  is  at  once  symptom  and  worst 
cause  of  over-fatigue.  We  have  thus  far  noticed  a  few 
of  the  results  of  modern  changes  in  conditions  and 
habits  of  life  in  males.  That  similar  causes  have  re- 
sulted in  similar,  perhaps  more  marked,  effects  upon 
the  American  woman,  can  hardly  be  doubted.  The 
fathers  and  mothers  have  sinned,  and  too  frequently  the 
children's  teeth  are  set  on  edge.  They  do  not  inherit 
disease  directly,  but  they  are  born  and  grow  up  with 
a  lower  vitality  and  often  with  a  morbid  predisposition. 

Two  classes  of  children  in  our  public  schools  to-day 
demand  our  special  attention.  First,  the  children  of 
business  and  professional  men.  Some  or  many  of  these 
are  congenitally  liable  to  nervous  weakness,  or  are 
suffering  from  low  vitality.  They  must  be  guarded 
from,  and  strengthened  against,  their  dangers.  Second, 
the  brighter,  more  promising,  and  more  ambitious 
children  of  every  class.    Both  these  classes  will  prob- 


PRESENT  NEEDS  IN  EDUCATION  13 

ably  enter  mercantile  or  professional  careers,  and  both 
must  be  fortified  accordingly.  They  should  furnish  our 
legislators  and  leaders  a  few  years  hence.  A  tough 
body  and  a  sound  nervous  system  are  absolutely  essen- 
tial to  them  both. 

"^Muscular  exercise  and  fresh  air  are  absolutely  neces- 
sary to  the  child  to  promote  growth  and  development 
of  all  the  vital  organs,  the  brain  included.  -If  the  motor 
centres  are  not  well  developed,  the  adult  becomes  an 
unpractical  dreamer,  ever,  as  President  Walker  has 
said,  "standing  shivering  on  the  brink  of  action;" 
always  planning,  hoping,  or  criticising,  never  creating 
or  realizing.  The  motor  centres  must  be  developed 
early,  if  at  all. 

The  average  child  needs  far  more  outdoor  exercise 
to-day  than  a  century  ago.  He  actually  has  far  less 
than  used  to  be  furnished  by  the  farm.  In  the  city  he 
has  very  little,  if  any  at  all.  We  must  not  forget  that 
the  child  begins  going  to  school  much  younger,  and 
that  the  school  year  is  almost  three  times  as  long  as 
then.  We  are  already  planning  summer  schools  to 
keep  him  busy,  and  to  take  him  off  our  hands,  for  the 
rest  of  the  year. 

But  moral  health  and  welfare  is  at  least  fully  as 
important  as  physical.  The  great  increase  of  wealth 
and  its  accumulation  in  the  hands  of  a  few  are  fraught 
with  moral  dangers  to  the  state  and  to  the  citizen.  I 
can  find  no  record  in  history  that  any  state  has  perished 
through  poverty  or  hardship.  But  few  states  or  indi- 
viduals can  long  endure  prosperity  or  luxury.  It  is  very 
likely  to  breed  flabbiness  of  tissue,  if  not  rottenness  of 
the  bones.  Prophets  and  seers  of  all  ages  have  dreaded 
and  denounced  the  accumulation  of  great  wealth.    We 


14  GROWTH  AND  EDUCATION 

must  recognize  and  face  this  danger,  and  gird  our  loins 
to  meet  it. 

Wealth  and  physical  comfort  loom  large  before  our 
eyes.  We  all  see  and  reasonably  desire  the  comfort 
or  luxury  enjoyed  by  the  few.  Everywhere  we  see  the 
desire,  if  not  the  cold-blooded  intent,  to  get  something 
for  nothing,  to  attain  fame  or  fortune  without  giving 
an  equivalent  of  honest  work  in  return.  The  isolation 
which  made  our  forefathers  hunger  for  neighbors  has 
given  place  to  overcrowding,  where  each  man  must  push 
and  struggle  for  place  and  livelihood.  Never  have  men 
planned  more  shrewdly  or  worked  harder  to  get  a  liv- 
ing. Far  less  thought  is  given  to  living  the  life  of  the 
highest  enjoyments  and  attainments.  Idealism  is  at 
a  heavy  discount ;  the  tangible  and  the  eatable  are  the 
realities.  Crude  materialism  is  the  practical  philosophy 
and  policy  of  too  large  a  part  of  our  population.  Such 
conditions  do  not  tend  to  produce  men  of  great  hearts 
and  of  broad  sympathies.  Yet  "  out  of  the  heart  are 
the  issues  of  life."  The  invisible  forms  a  very  small 
part  of  our  environment;  yet  it  still  remains  true  that 
"  the  things  which  are  not  seen  are  eternal."  "  Where 
there  is  no  vision  the  people  perish." 

The  opportunities  are  equally  great.  Men  are 
awakening  to  the  responsibilities  of  wealth  and  cul- 
ture, power  and  knowledge.  Never  was  charity  more 
broad  and  active.  Everywhere  we  see  signs  of  a  soul- 
hunger  after  something  sure,  true,  and  grand,  which  is 
almost  pathetic.  There  is  more  religion  in  the  world 
than  ever  before.  Soon  it  will  crystallize  in  new  and 
fairer  forms.  Hopeful  signs  are  tenfold  more  numer- 
ous and  clear  than  discouraging  symptoms. 

In  some  way  we  must  rear  a  race  of  men  and  women 


PRESENT  NEEDS  IN  EDUCATION  15 

who  can  ward  off  the  dangers  and  seize  the  limitless 
opportunities.  They  must  be  men  and  women  of  power, 
who  can  neither  be  bribed  nor  frightened,  and  who  will 
be  heard.  Child-labor,  defrauding  of  the  poor,  corrup- 
tion and  bribery,  evils  as  great  as  slavery,  are  firmly 
intrenched,  and  defended  by  all  the  resources  of  wealth 
and  influence.  It  is  no  easy  task  to  dislodge  them. 
Capable,  wise,  and  strong  leaders  are  needed  to  organ- 
ize the  overwhelming  forces  for  good.  We  need 
men  and  women  of  knowledge,  intelligence,  patience, 
wisdom ;  of  unwavering  faith  in  the  principles  of 
"government  of  the  people,  by  the  people,  and  for  the 
people ; "  of  profound  moral  and  religious  convictions 
and  loyalty.  Above  all,  they  must  be  "  strong  and  of 
a  very  good  courage."    Such  we  must  furnish. 

'Evidently  our  system  of  education  must  be  continu- 
ally modified  to  meet  new  conditions,  if  it  is  to  train 
boys  and  girls  to  meet  the  emergencies  and  seize  the 
opportunities  of  modern  life.  The  ideal  system  is  the 
one  which  best  meets  the  vital  problems  of  the  present 
and  the  near  future.  One  hundred  years  ago  the  school 
could  rightly  lay  all  its  emphasis  on  books  and  learn- 
ing. These  the  home  could  not  supply.  But  home  and 
farm  could  and  did  insure  physical  health  and  vigor, 
all  kinds  of  manual  training,  ingenuity,  perseverance, 
and  efficiency.  Now  the  school  must  furnish  all  these, 
as  well  as  mental  discipline  and  culture.  Especially  it 
must  insure  nervous  strength,  vigor,  poise,  and  endur- 
ance. In  one  word,  it  must  be  an  institution  of  power 
as  well  as  of  learning. 

What  are  the  sources  of  power  and  efficiency  in  the 
strong  man  or  woman  ?  How  can  we  promote  strength 
and  power?    Look  at  a  great  ocean  liner  plowing  its 


16  GROWTH  AND  EDUCATION 

way  through  the  water.  You  see  the  captain  and  steers- 
man and  the  officers,  the  mast  with  perhaps  a  sail  to 
steady  the  ship.  Go  down  into  the  furnace-room,  and 
you  will  find  grimy,  half-naked  men  shoveling  coal 
into  the  furnaces.  These  men  do  not  dine  in  the  saloon, 
or  strut  on  deck ;  they  drive  the  ship.  The  power  is  in 
the  steam  furnished  by  the  combustion  of  the  coal. 

Similarly  in  our  bodies  the  ultimate  source  of  power 
is  in  the  digestive  system.  This  must  furnish  material 
for  growth  and  fuel  for  our  nervous  and  muscular  cells. 
Every  one  of  these  is  a  microscopic  engine  and  burns 
fuel.  But  the  engine  must  have  a  powerful  draft  to 
bring  in  oxygen  and  to  carry  off  smoke  and  other  pro- 
ducts of  combustion.  So  the  second  essential  of  power 
is  good  lungs,  large  enough  to  give  the  blood  all  the 
oxygen  which  it  can  carry,  and  thoroughly  to  remove 
the  carbon  dioxide.  The  kidneys  must  also  be  vigorous 
and  active  to  remove  the  nitrogenous  waste.  Otherwise 
all  the  organs  will  be  clogged  and  poisoned.  The  heart 
must  be  large  and  strong  to  carry  fuel  and  oxygen 
swiftly  to  the  cells,  and  to  remove  their  waste.  And 
the  whole  organism  must  work  economically  without 
waste  of  energy. 

In  a  badly  constructed  engine  the  draft  is  insuffi- 
cient. The  coal  is  only  half-burned  and  it  is  impossible 
to  get  up  steam.  The  steam  is  wasted  by  leakage,  or  is 
poorly  applied  so  that  its  energy  is  very  incompletely 
utilized.  The  cylinder  was  not  properly  planned,  and 
the  movements  of  the  machinery  are  irregular  and 
jerky.  There  is  much  friction,  and  the  bearings  heat. 
The  engine  is  too  large  or  too  small  for  the  furnace 
and  boilers.  Its  parts  are  not  properly  proportioned. 
Only  a  small  amount  of  energy  is  produced,  and  most 


PRESENT  NEEDS  IN  EDUCATION  17 

of  this  is  wasted.  The  engine  is  frequently  or  usually 
in  the  repair-shop.  Many  men  and  women  are  like 
such  inefficient  and  uneconomical  engines. 

The  energy  must  all  be  utilized,  and  wisely  and  eco- 
nomically expended.  This  is  insured  by  a  healthy, 
firm,  and  steady  nervous  system.  The  original  and 
fundamental  use  of  the  nervous  system  is  to  insure 
that  every  sensory  stimulus  shall  call  forth  a  muscular 
response  suited  to  meet  the  emergency.  A  fly  alights 
on  my  face  and  tickles  my  skin.  This  stimulates  an 
organ  of  feeling  and  excites  a  nerve  centre.  It  sends  a 
motor  impulse  to  the  muscles  of  hand  and  arm  to  drive 
the  fly  away.  I  see  an  apple,  go  to  it,  pick  it,  and  eat 
it.  I  hear  and  smell  an  automobile,  jump  from  the 
road,  and  escape  with  my  life.  The  day's  work  is  a 
series  of  muscular  responses  to  sensory  stimuli,  nothing 
more  nor  less. 

Hence  it  is  of  the  utmost  importance  that  the  nerv- 
ous system  should  rouse  to  action  exactly  and  only 
those  muscles  which  can  do  the  needed  work,  should 
stimulate  their  action  only  so  long  and  so  far  as  will 
meet  the  emergency.  Many  of  us  waste  every  day 
enough  energy  to  more  than  double  our  efficiency.  We 
waste  it  in  fret,  hurry,  and  worry.  We  consume  in  one 
movement  twice  or  thrice  as  much  as  is  needed.  All 
our  muscles  are  tense,  when  nine  tenths  of  them  were 
better  relaxed.  Then  there  is  the  "hair-trigger"  nerv- 
ous system  which  continually  calls  for  action  when 
there  is  no  need  or  emergency.  No  wonder  that  we 
accomplish  little  and  still  become  very  weary.  The 
trained  athlete  is  very  economical  in  his  expenditure  of 
energy. 

The  character  of  our  actions  and  of  our  life  depends 


18  GROWTH  AND  EDUCATION 

very  largely  upon  the  direction  followed  by  the  outgo- 
ing motor  impulses.  Three  men  were  on  the  road,  two 
Jews  and  a  Samaritan.  All  three  saw  a  poor  Jew  lying 
by  the  roadside.  The  light  reflected  from  the  poor  fel- 
low's body  fell  on  the  retinae  of  their  eyes,  and  sent 
a  wave  of  sensory  impulses  to  the  brain  alike  in  all 
three.  In  all  three  motor  impulses  went  out  from  the 
brain  to  the  muscles.  In  the  Samaritan  these  went  to 
the  arms  mainly.  He  stooped  and  raised  and  tended 
the  sufferer.  In  the  Jews  the  motor  impulses  all  went 
to  the  legs,  and  the  cowards  hustled  off  toward  Jericho. 
A  large  part  of  education  should  consist  in  a  proper 
training  of  the  motor  side  of  the  brain,  and  of  the 
proper  use  of  the  muscles.  Thus  far  we  have  spoken  of 
man  almost  as  if  he  were  a  machine  or  an  automaton. 
He  is  this  and  far  more  beside.  It  is  the  mental  char- 
acters which  have  "  raised  him  far  above  his  humbler 
fellows."  Our  man  of  power  is  a  man  of  strong  and 
steady  will  and  of  firm  purpose,  from  which  he  is  not 
easily  moved  or  dissuaded.  He  has  a  strong  will  be- 
cause he  feels  deeply  and  intensely.  We  shall  see  later 
how  great  emphasis  Nature  lays  on  the  heart. 

The  efficient  man  not  only  feels  and  wills  powerfully, 
he  sees  things  exactly  as  they  are.  This  power  is  one 
of  the  characteristics  of  genius.  He  is  a  man  of  high 
ideals,  in  the  possibility  of  whose  realization  he  has 
boundless  confidence  and  hope.  He  has  faith  in  God 
and  trust  in  man.  Hence  his  courage  is  undaunted. 
Having  formed  the  habit  of  seeing  things  as  they  are, 
he  is  wise  in  his  recognition  and  selections  of  means 
and  skillful  in  adapting  and  using  them  for  the  highest 
ends.  He  is  continually  learning  by  experience.  Some 
of  us  are  so  afraid  of  making  mistakes  that  we  never 


PRESENT  NEEDS  IN  EDUCATION  19 

dare  to  try  an  experiment.    But  experience  is  the  best 
teacher. 

All  these  powers,  moral,  intellectual,  and  physical, 
are  highly  developed  and  well  balanced  in  our  strong 
man.  He  is  symmetrical.  There  is  neither  too  much 
nor  too  little  of  many  qualities.  Such  men  are  rare. 
Some  power  usually  falls  short  of  complete  develop- 
ment, and  its  lack  mars  or  ruins  the  whole.  This  is  the 
pan's  weak  spot,  which  always  hampers  him,  and  which 

Eooner  or  later  gives  way  and  causes  his  collapse.  Such 
arge,  well-grown,  completely  developed,  symmetrical, 
strong  men  and  women  are  precisely  the  ones  needed  as 
leaders  to  help  us  to  meet  our  emergencies  and  to  grasp 
our  boundless  and  countless  opportunities.  Even  if  our 
system  of  education  can  fully  realize  this  ideal  in  only 
a  few  instances,  it  must  realize  it  as  far  as  possible  in  all. 
Only  thus  can  it  discharge  its  duty  of  fitting  the  rising 
generation  to  beat  the  record  made  by  our  ancestors. 
Anything  less  means  stagnation  or  degeneration. 

Our  problem,  therefore,  is  how  to  develop  men  and 
women  having  all  these  essential  elements  of  power 
well  developed  and  well  balanced  in  one  individual. 
It  is  not  an  easy  one.  We  must  make  full  and  wise 
use  of  every  means  at  our  disposal. 

Our  present  material  progress  and  success  are  due 
largely  to  the  fact  that  we  have  learned  to  form  a  part- 
nership with  Nature  and  her  forces.  Rivers  turn  our 
wheels,  coal  drives  our  engines  and  locomotives,  elec- 
tricity runs  our  errands  and  pulls  our  cars.  A  few 
gallons  of  oil  or  gasoline  do  the  work  of  hundreds  of 
men  or  horses  without  weariness.  Have  we  ever  care- 
fully considered  the  possibility  of  making  Nature  our 
partner  in  the  work  of  education  ?    She  will  do  a  large 


20  GROWTH  AND  EDUCATION 

part  of  the  work  for  us  if  we  will  allow  her.  She  will 
surely  thwart  us  if  we  run  counter  to  her  laws.  If  we  are 
to  gain  her  aid  and  support  we  must  discover  and  respect 
her  laws  of  structure,  growth,  development,  and  life. 

In  our  zeal  for  learning  we  have  often  forgotten  that 
the  scholar  must  first  of  all  be  a  man.  We  have  seen 
that  a  strong  and  efficient  man  is  something  more  than 
a  mere  stuffed  or  even  well-trained  intellect.  He  is  by- 
no  means  a  disembodied  spirit.  He  is  an  exceedingly 
complex  being  of  many  organs. 

We  are  dealing  with  children.  The  student  of  psych- 
ology lays  out  for  us  a  system  of  training  based  on 
the  working  of  the  adult  mind.  It  contains  much  of 
great  value.  But  does  the  child's  mind  work  like  the 
adult's?  Or  must  he  act  and  think  as  a  child?  A  very 
wise  and  learned  committee  lays  out  for  our  schools 
a  curriculum  which  does  not  assign  a  single  period  in 
the  week  to  physical  training,  nor  mention  any  such 
branch.  They  seem  to  have  regarded  the  child  as  a 
disembodied  spirit,  or  in  great  haste  to  become  one. 

We  do  not  ask  the  baby  to  solve  problems  in  mathe- 
matics or  philosophy.  We  expect  and  desire  in  him 
only  the  dawn  of  mind.  We  ask  and  pray  that  he 
will  eat  well,  breathe  well,  sleep  well,  wriggle  and  cry 
more  or  less,  keep  healthy,  and  grow.  This  is  his  whole 
duty.  Bodily  growth  is  his  business.  For  how  many 
years  is  growth  the  chief  business  of  the  child  ?  Is  it  his 
chief  business  throughout  the  primary  and  intermediate 
grades  ?  If  so,  what  and  how  much  is  the  school  doing 
to  promote  growth  during  these  years  ? 

Perhaps  bodily  growth  is  no  business  of  the  school, 
but  of  the  home  alone.  Our  strong  man  must  have  well- 
grown  organs.    Childhood  is  their  period  for  growth. 


PRESENT  NEEDS  IN  EDUCATION  21 

Growth  seems  to  be  the  business  of  the  child  both  at 
home  and  at  school.  Certainly  the  school  can  and  some- 
times does  hamper  growth.  It  can  promote  it.  If  it 
can  do  so  it  certainly  should.  This  is  Nature's  clear 
decision.  If  we  will  not  accept  her  verdict,  we  may  as 
well  give  up  hope  of  her  cooperation  in  the  work  of 
education  at  the  very  outset. 

In  the  grammar  grade  is  learning  and  mental  disci- 
pline of  chief  importance  to  the  girl,  or  is  care  of  the 
body  and  physical  exercise  absolutely  essential  at  this 
period?  No  one  seems  to  know,  and  very  few  care. 
What  would  Nature  say?  If  we  disobey  her  laws,  it 
will  cost  us  a  heavy  penalty.  "  The  plowing  of  the 
wicked  is  sin ; "  not  because  plowing  is  not  excellent, 
but  because  it  is  allowed  to  crowd  out  a  far  more  im- 
portant duty.  Are  some  of  our  educational  experiments 
and  efforts  sin  ? 

Every  one  of  these  questions  is  of  vital  importance. 
To  how  many  of  them  can  we  give  an  intelligent  an- 
swer ?  A  man  who  knows  little  or  nothing  of  hydraulics 
will  not  succeed  very  well  in  harnessing  the  river  to  his 
looms.  Only  the  expert  in  electricity  can  plan  or  build 
a  dynamo.  If  we  cannot  answer  intelligently  the  sim- 
plest and  most  fundamental  questions  as  to  the  laws  of 
growth  and  development,  how  Can  we  hope  to  frame  a 
system  of  education  which  will  produce  strong  men  and 
women  ?  If  we  disregard  or  disobey  the  laws,  will  not 
Nature  thwart  us  in  the  one  case  just  as  surely  and 
completely  as  in  the  other?  Only  as  we  know  what  a 
man  is,  and  what  a  child  is  and  is  doing  at  every  stage 
of  his  growth  and  development,  can  we  hope  to  plan  a 
system  of  education  which  will  win  the  cooperation  of 
Nature  in  our  work. 


22  GROWTH  AND  EDUCATION 

Even  our  hasty  and  superficial  analysis  of  the  man 
of  power  has  shown  us  that  he  is  a  very  complex  being. 
We  need  to  know  far  more  of  him.  The  easiest  and 
most  feasible  method  of  study  is  to  attempt  to  trace  his 
development  as  a  species  during  his  whole  past  history. 

But  some  one  will  say :  "  Why  go  so  far  afield  ? 
What  can  the  theory  of  evolution  teach  us  concern- 
ing the  education  of  children  ?  " 

If  man  is  the  result  of  a  long  process  of  evolution, 
some  of  his  organs  must  be  very  old  and  some  very 
young.  The  same  will  probably  prove  true  of  different 
parts  of  the  same  system.  Some  of  our  muscles  are 
very  old  and  some  very  young.  The  same  is  true  of 
different  parts  of  the  brain.  The  oldest  parts  must 
be  those  which  are  essential  to  life,  otherwise  Nature 
would  not  have  begun  with  them.  The  oldest  are  fun- 
damental and  basal;  the  others  rest  on  these  like  a 
palace  on  its  heavy  and  rough  foundations.  We  must 
lay  our  foundations  deep  and  strong.  If  organs  arise 
successively,  there  ought  to  be  a  very  close  relation  and 
interdependence  between  some  of  them.  If  at  a  certain 
stage  one  system  has  drawn  or  lifted  all  the  other  sys- 
tems, that  system  was  evidently  the  strategic  point  or  key 
to  the  whole  process  of  evolution  at  that  stage.  These 
facts  are  of  great  importance,  if  they  have  any  bearing 
on  the  growth  of  the  individual  child. 

They  bear  directly  and  vitally  on  the  growth  of  the 
child.  It  is  a  law  of  evolution  that  the  development  of 
the  individual  is  a  brief  recapitulation  of  the  develop- 
ment of  the  species.  The  development  of  the  species, 
phylogenesis,  occupied  ages  ;  that  of  the  individual,  on- 
togenesis, is  very  brief.  The  recapitulation  must  be 
crude  and  incomplete,  for  Nature  has  made  a  short  cut 


PRESENT  NEEDS  IN  EDUCATION  23 

wherever  she  could  in  the  development  of  the  individ- 
ual. The  study  of  the  evolution  of  the  human  species 
will  give  us  a  glimpse  of  the  order  of  succession  in 
which  different  systems  or  parts  of  systems  mature  suf- 
ficiently to  respond  to  the  stimuli  of  our  training  and 
exercise.  It  can  show  us  what  is  fundamental,  and 
what  organ  at  each  stage  gives  us  the  key  to  the  whole 
process  of  development. 

A  large  part  of  the  history  of  the  race  is  recapitu- 
lated before  birth.  We  need  to  know  a  little  about 
embryology.  Here  Nature  has  her  own  way  to  a  large 
extent,  and  we  may  study  certain  laws  of  growth  and 
development  better  than  at  any  later  time. 

We  are  beginning  to  see  the  character  and  scope  of 
our  problem  and  of  the  method  of  its  solution.  First 
of  all  we  must  know  what  man  is,  for  manhood  is  the 
far-off  goal  of  all  our  pupils'  development.  Then  we 
must  discover  just  how  a  baby  grows  into  manhood, 
and  just  what  Nature  would  have  us  do  for  him  at 
every  age  and  stage.  She  has  her  own  plan  and  system 
of  education,  and  will  not  change  it  to  suit  our  schemes 
and  whims.  When  we  have  discovered  her  plan,  we 
may  well  consider  whether  it  is  good  and  best,  or 
whether  it  may  be  slightly  modified  and  improved.  We 
may  not  desire  to  try  to  improve  it.  Nature  is  no  such 
blunderer  as  some  of  us  seem  to  think. 

When  we  have  discovered  the  characteristics  of 
every  stage  of  childhood,  we  can  attempt  to  frame  a 
system  of  education  suited  at  each  stage  to  gain  the 
cooperation  of  Nature,  and  thus  to  train  men  and  wo- 
men of  growth  and  balance,  of  health,  vigor,  power, 
and  efficiency.  These  are  qualities  to  which  Nature  is 
always  ready  to  bend  all  her  efforts. 


24  GROWTH  AND   EDUCATION 

In  the  remaining  chapters  our  question  will  be 
chiefly  how  we  can  insure  the  sound  body  and  vigorous 
health.  This  is  the  foundation  without  which  the 
higher  qualities  of  mind  and  heart  develop  precariously 
or  feebly,  or  fail  to  realize  their  possibilities.  The 
basis  of  education  is  and  must  be  physical. 


CHAPTEK  n 

MAN  IN  THE   LIGHT   OF  EVOLUTION 

We  must  be  very  brief  in  our  review  of  man's  evo- 
lution, and  can  glance  at  only  those  stages  which  are 
suited  to  throw  light  on  his  physical  structure  and  de- 
velopment. 

Animal  life  is  reduced  to  its  lowest  terms  in  the 
Protozoa,  in  which  all  the  vital  functions  are  performed 
by  one  or  a  few  cells.  These  cells  represent  the  units 
of  which  all  our  tissues  are  composed.  Far  above  the 
Protozoa  stand  the  Coelenterata,  illustrated  by  hydras, 
sea-anemones,  and  jelly-fishes.  The  older  naturalists 
called  all  these  forms  Zoophytes,  plant-animals.  They 
represent  a  second  stage  or  plane  of  life.  In  the  sim- 
plest forms  the  body  is  a  sack,  whose  cavity  is  the  seat 
of  digestion.  Nervous  and  muscular  tissues  are  very 
poorly  developed.  The  animal  has  no  special  organs  of 
respiration,  excretion,  or  circulation.  Everywhere  in 
this  stage  we  find  two  systems,  and  only  two,  suffi- 
ciently developed  to  be  fairly  effective ;  these  are  the 
digestive  and  the  reproductive.  They  are  absolutely 
essential  to  life.  Digestion  furnishes  the  material  for 
growth  and  repair,  and  for  fuel.  After  these  needs 
have  been  supplied,  the  balance  is  devoted  to  reproduc- 
tion. The  reproductive  system  provides  for  the  survival 
of  the  species. 

Worms,  of  which  our  common  earthworm  is  one  of 
the  higher  forms,  represent  a  third  plane  of  life.  Lower 


26  GROWTH  AND  EDUCATION 

worms  greatly  increased  the  amount  of  muscular  tissue, 
and  attained  the  general  plan  of  structure  of  the  trunk 
of  all  higher  forms  of  life.  The  muscles  forming  the 
outer  wall  of  the  body  were  used  for  locomotion. 

The  introduction  of  muscular  locomotion  and  of  a 
large  amount  of  muscular  tissue  required  and  occa- 
sioned many  changes  in  the  body.  Muscular  tissue  is 
like  a  steam  engine  in  one  respect.  It  gains  the  energy 
for  its  work  by  burning  material  brought  to  it  by  the 
blood.  A  furnace  requires  not  only  fuel,  but  an  open- 
ing by  which  oxygen  may  enter  and  a  pipe  for  the 
escape  of  the  smoke  and  gases.  Similarly  the  develop- 
ment of  muscular  locomotion  stimulated  the  improve- 
ment of  the  digestive  system  to  furnish  its  fuel.  Special 
respiratory  organs  appeared  to  furnish  the  oxygen. 
Excretory  tubules,  the  forerunners  of  our  kidneys, 
developed  to  remove  the  nitrogenous  waste.  A  system 
of  blood-vessels  soon  followed  to  insure  a  constant  and 
rapid  distribution  of  food  and  oxygen,  and  to  carry 
away  from  the  cells  the  products  of  combustion  and 
other  waste  material. 

We  must  never  forget  that  the  development  of  the 
muscular  system  carried  with  it,  or  dragged  after  it, 
the  development  of  our  most  important  viscera :  kid- 
neys, lungs,  heart,  and  blood-vessels,  and,  as  we  shall 
see  later,  of  the  brain  itself.  A  good  digestive  system 
is  essential  to  existence;  a  tough  muscular  system  is 
essential  to  health.  But  a  muscle  contracts  only  in 
response  to  an  impulse  coming  along  a  motor  nerve- 
fibril  from  a  central  nerve-cell.  Every  added  muscular 
fibre  absolutely  required  a  corresponding  addition  to 
the  nervous  system,  which  accordingly  steadily  in- 
creased in  size  and   complexity.     In  any  segmented 


MAN   IN   THE   LIGHT  OF   EVOLUTION  27 

worm,  like  the  earthworm,  which  is  composed  of  a 
long  series  of  rings,  or  similar  portions  of  the  body, 
there  is  a  ganglion  or  group  of  nerve-cells  in  every 
segment. 

But  the  moving  animal  is  continually  coming  into 
new  situations,  finding  new  conditions,  sometimes  favor- 
able, sometimes  dangerous.  It  must  "  sense  "  the  situ- 
ation, and  act  accordingly.  Hence  we  find  special 
sensory  organs  developing  at  the  front  end  of  the 
body  for  sight,  smell,  and  taste.  Delicate  organs  of 
feeling,  later  to  be  used  for  hearing,  also  appear.  The 
highest  worms  possess  all  the  organs  of  special  sense 
which  we  have,  but  often  in  a  very  crude  form. 

The  presence  and  work  of  these  highest  sense-organs 
powerfully  stimulated  the  foremost  ganglion,  or  nerve- 
centre.  It  had  to  do  the  work  of  a  brain.  The  eye 
starts  as  an  organ  capable  of  distinguishing  between 
light  and  darkness.  When  it  had  become  eidoscopic, 
capable  of  forming  images  of  external  objects,  the 
brain  developed  with  great  rapidity. 

The  more  swiftly  moving  worm  soon  developed 
weapons  of  offense ;  teeth,  etc.  Two  zoophytes  may 
compete  with  each  other.  But  the  strongest  jelly-fishes 
could  hardly  fight,  if  they  would.  The  zoophytic  era 
was  one  of  comparative  peace.  But  worms  can  harm, 
one  another.  They  or  their  immediate  descendants 
began  the  battle  which  still  rages.  This  again  makes 
life  vastly  more  complex.  The  animal  must  recognize 
its  enemies.  If  it  were  correct  to  speak  of  motives 
among  these  lowest  forms,  we  might  say  that  new 
motives  will  soon  appear.  The  zoophyte  could  feel  but 
one  emotion,  hunger.  The  lowest  vertebrate  fears  and 
becomes  angry.    At  least,  he  acts  as  if  he  had  these 


28  GROWTH  AND  EDUCATION 

feelings.  The  introduction  of  muscular  locomotion 
raised  life  to  a  new  plane  far  above  that  of  the  zo- 
ophyte. There  is  nothing  vegetative  about  life  now. 
We  might,  perhaps,  call  this  third  stage  the  animal 
plane. 

But  the  worm,  after  all  his  attainments,  had  hardly- 
begun  to  utilize  the  powers  and  possibilities  of  the  mus- 
cular system.  As  soon  as  the  body  wall  had  attained 
a  fair  degree  of  development,  a  skeleton  appeared. 
Mollusks  developed  an  external  protective  shell,  which 
impeded  locomotion,  and  usually  precluded  higher  de- 
velopment. The  clam,  safely  ensconced  in  the  mud, 
beyond  the  reach  of  discomfort  and  danger,  is  the 
logical  goal  of  this  experiment.  Arthropoda,  including 
crabs,  spiders,  etc.,  developed  an  external,  mostly  loco- 
motive, skeleton,  and  finally  culminated  in  insects. 

But  some  swimming  worm  began  to  develop  an  in- 
ternal locomotive  skeleton,  and  finally  the  vertebrate 
attained  a  rod  of  cartilage,  the  notochord,  which  gave 
place  to  the  vertebral  column  or  backbone.  This  skele- 
ton opened  up  new  and  great  possibilities.  Larger 
masses  of  muscles  could  be  used  in  the  trunk.  Fins 
appeared  in  fish.  The  amphibians,  now  represented  by 
frogs  and  salamanders,  changed  the  fins  into  legs,  be- 
came air-breathing,  and  emerged  on  land.  Life  in  the 
air  increased  the  amount  of  oxygen,  and  diminished 
the  loss  of  heat.  This  increased  the  efficiency  of  every 
organ,  notably  that  of  the  nervous  system. 

The  legs  of  the  more  primitive  amphibians,  e.  g.,  the 
salamander,  are  weak,  and  cannot  raise  the  body  from 
the  ground.  But  in  reptiles,  e.  g.,  lizards,  and  in  mam- 
mals, they  lengthen  and  strengthen.  The  animal  no 
longer  crawls  or  creeps,  but  runs.  Finally  the  arboreal 


MAN  IN  THE  LIGHT  OF  EVOLUTION  29 

forms,  lemurs  and  apes,  developed  the  hand.  Each  new 
part  gradually  attained  a  freedom  and  range  of  move- 
ment of  which  the  older  and  lower  parts  were  incapable. 

The  human  muscular  system  may  almost  be  called 
stratified.  Different  parts  are  of  very  different  age. 
Our  trunk-muscles  originated  in  worms ;  those  of  shoul- 
der and  thigh  in  fish;  those  of  arm  and  leg  in  amphibia ; 
the  hand  as  such  was  developed  by  arboreal  mammals. 
The  central  portions  are  older,  the  peripheral  younger.1 
The  old,  central  systems  of  muscles  are  heavy,  stout, 
simple,  incapable  of  very  precise  or  fine  movement. 
The  new  systems  in  the  hand  are  complex,  light,  capable 
of  a  great  variety  of  very  precise  movements.  In  any 
complex  action,  e.  g.,  picking  up  a  pin  from  the  floor, 
we  begin  as  a  rule  with  old  central  muscles,  we  finish 
with  peripheral.  The  former  may  be  called  funda- 
mental; the  latter,  accessory. 

It  would  be  interesting  to  notice  how  the  increased 
use  of  the  muscles  and  the  larger  demands  for  fuel 
left  a  continually  decreasing  balance  for  reproduction. 
Fewer  and  fewer  young  could  be  produced.  Each  one 
became  of  greater  and  greater  value  and  importance. 
This  was  apparently  the  occasion  of  the  change  from 
oviparous  to  intra-uterine  development.  This  and  the 
long  period  of  infancy  led  finally  to  family  life,  as  Pro- 
fessor Fiske  has  shown  in  his  "  Destiny  of  Man."  But 
this  lies  apart  from  our  subject. 

We  must  return  to  the  development  of  the  nervous 
system.  Its  use  is  evidently  to  insure  that  every  sen- 
sory stimulus  should  result  in  a  muscular  or  motor  re- 
sponse suited  to  the  emergency.2   Life  is  really  a  series 

1  Mercier,  The  Nervous  System  and  the  Mind,  p.  374. 

2  James,  Psychology,  Briefer  Course,  p.  91. 


30  GROWTH  AND   EDUCATION 

of  responses  to  stimuli.  The  day's  work  is  nothing 
else. 

Evidently  the  development  of  the  nervous  system  has 
had  its  occasion  and  stimulus  in  that  of  the  muscles  and 
the  sense-organs.  The  brain  of  a  fish  or  reptile  is  surely 
not  an  organ  of  logical  thought,  nor  has  it  been  devel- 
oped by  logical  thinking.  It  is  mainly  an  organ  for  the 
control  of  locomotion.  We  find  the  occasion  of  the 
brain's  complexity  in  the  steadily  increasing  range  and 
complexity  of  movement. 

Motion  in  the  earthworm  is  a  comparatively  simple 
matter.  The  animal  lengthens  and  shortens,  or  writhes. 
Each  segment  contributes  its  part  to  the  movement  of  the 
body  under  the  control  of  its  own  centre  or  ganglion. 
The  animal  has  neither  eyes  nor  ears.  The  brain  can 
stop  or  originate  movement,  or  increase  or  decrease  it. 
Here  a  very  simple  system  suffices. 

A  shark  is  swimming  through  the  water.  The  body 
is  driven  by  sweeps  of  the  tail  drawn  alternately  right 
and  left  by  contraction  of  the  corresponding  muscles. 
This  movement  is  controlled  immediately  by  centres  in 
the  rear  part  of  the  spinal  marrow.  But  the  animal  is 
steered  upward  or  downward  by  the  fins.  These  must 
be  held  in  the  proper  position,  and  this  position  may 
be  changed  suddenly  or  frequently.  The  whole  body 
may  have  to  be  bent,  the  head  raised  or  lowered.  Let 
us  suppose  for  the  sake  of  simplicity  that  all  of  these 
changes  result  from  impulses  received  from  parts  of  the 
spinal  marrow.  Still  these  different  movements  must 
all  be  coordinated  in  time  and  degree.  This  demands  a 
higher  centre  above  all  the  lower  ones.  The  cerebellum 
or  small  brain  arises  in  response  to  this  need  or  work. 
Walking   demands   the   exact   coordination   of   many 


MAN  IN  THE  LIGHT  OF  EVOLUTION  31 

muscles.    Hence  the  cerebellum  of  man  is  very  highly 
developed. 

The  shark  hastens  forward  because  it  has  seen  its 
prey,  or  smelled  it,  or  heard  it  fall  into  the  water.  The 
sense-organs  have  developed  through  greater  use  in  con- 
nection with  swifter  locomotion.  The  nerves  of  the  eyes 
originate  or  end  in  the  top  of  the  mid-brain.  This  por- 
tion of  the  brain  owes  its  development  to  the  sense  of 
sight.  The  nerves  of  smell  end  farther  forward  at  the 
base  of  the  cerebral  lobes ;  the  nerves  of  hearing  far- 
ther back  in  the  medulla.    We  will  suppose  that  the 


COURSE   OF  NERVOUS  IMPULSES  IN  MOVING   SHARK 

Enters  at  II  if  Visual  and  goes  to  Roof  of  B.  Returns  to  Basal  Ganglia  at  X.  (Or 
it  may  reach  X  from  /  or  VIII.)  Goes  from  X  to  Cerebellum  C.  Impulses  from 
C  control  Centres  in  Spinal  Cord. 

sight  of  the  prey  has  attracted  the  shark.  Impulses 
from  the  mid-brain  must  in  some  way  reach  and  stimu- 
late the  cerebellum  to  coordinate  the  actions  of  the 
muscles  to  a  movement  in  the  right  direction.  The 
cerebellum  is  not  in  supreme  command,  so  to  speak, 
but  must  receive  orders  from  a  higher  centre  farther 
forward.  The  impulse  may  reach  the  cerebellum  directly 
from  the  mid-brain,  but  far  more  probably  through  gang- 
lia lying  in  the  basal  or  lower  portion  of  the  cerebrum. 
We  here  catch  a  glimpse  of  the  hierarchy  of  centres 
in  the  nervous  system,  subordinated  to  one  another  like 


GROWTH  AND  EDUCATION 


the  officers  of  companies,  regiments,  brigades,  etc.,  in  a 
great  army.  The  importance  of  this  will  become  clear 
a  little  later. 


\ 


BRAIN  OF  TURTLE 

Showing  increase  of  Parts  in  Higher  Vertebrates  by  Dotted  Lines.  Medulla  and  Mid- 
brain increase  little;  Cerebellum  increases  much,  and  Cerebrum  far  more. 

When  the  earlier  amphibia  and  reptiles,  with  short 
and  weak  legs,  crawled  or  walked  upon  the  ground,  the 
problem  of  locomotion  was  greatly 
changed.  The  body  had  to  be  sup- 
ported by  jointed  legs.  These  had 
more  muscles  than  the  fins,  and 
correspondingly  greater  freedom 
of  movement.  This  occasioned  a 
higher  development  of  the  whole 
series  of  motor  nerve-centres.  In 
these  crawling  animals  the  sense  of 
smell  became  of  great  importance, 
and  developed  rapidly  through 
greater  use.  According  to  Edinger , 
it  stimulated  in  reptiles  the  devel- 
opment of  a  new  portion  of  the 
brain,  which  was  to  gain  precedence 
of  and  control  over  all  the  rest. 
This  is  the  cerebral  cortex. 

BRAIN  OF  TURTLE 

(From  above.)  1  James,  Psychology,  Briefer  Course,  p.  105. 


MAN  IN   THE  LIGHT  OF  EVOLUTION 


33 


The  upper  portion  or  roof  of  the  cerebrum  is  com- 
posed in  fish  of  a  thin  membrane  containing  no  nerve- 
cells.  But  in  reptiles  such  cells  have  appeared  and  have 
arranged  themselves  in  several  layers. 
The  cortex  appears  at  first  to  have 
been  a  seat  of  smell  alone.  But  as 
the  animal  gained  length  of  limb  and 
swifter  locomotion,  especially  as  its 
dangers  multiplied,  sight  and  hearing 
were  more  and  more  used,  and  these 
powers  and  their  centres  improved 
rapidly.  We  find  that  in  mammals 
every  one  of  the  higher  senses  reports 
finally  to  some  portion  of  this  same 
cortex :  the  eyes  to  the  rear  portion, 
the  occipital  lobe ;  the  ears  to  small 
lateral  portions  low  down  on  the  tem- 
poral lobes.  A  better  mode  and  higher 
stage  of  sense-perception  is  thus  in- 
troduced. A  lower  mammal  may  very 
probably  see  with  the  mid-brain,  but 
it  perceives  and  recognizes  with  the 
cortex. 

We  also  find  in  the  cortex  the 
centres  of  ultimate  control  of  all  the 
voluntary  movements  of  the  muscles 
of  the  body.  It  has  evidently  become 
the  seat  of  supreme  command  and 
control  over  all  the  older  sensory  and  motor  centres 
in  the  brain.  The  motor  area  occupies  the  parietal  por- 
tion of  the  cortex,  being  nearly  midway  between  its 
front  and  hind  ends.  In  this  area  every  great  group 
of  muscles,  of  face,  trunk,  arm,  leg,  etc.,  and   th^ir 


£ 

BRAIN   OF   FISH 
(From  above  Diagram.) 

X  =  Capacity-Lobes. 
A  =  Cerebrum. 
B  =  Mid-brain. 
C  =  Cerebellum. 
D  =  Medulla. 
E  =:  Spinal  Marrow. 
/  =  Olfactory  Nerves. 
II  =  Optic  Nerves. 
VIII  =  Auditory  Nerves. 


34  GROWTH  AND  EDUCATION 

divisions,  seems  to  have  its  own  special  portion.  Good 
physiologists  maintain  that  this  area  represents  a  pro- 
jection map  of  the  movements  of  all  parts  of  the  body. 
It  stands  to  these  in  a  relation  comparable  to  that  exist- 
ing between  the  keyboard  of  a  piano  and  the  strings 
which  produce  the  different  notes.  It  has  received  the 
name  of  Meynert's  area  of  projection. 

Whether  every  group  of  muscles  or  movements  has 
an  area  as  sharply  circumscribed  as  this  would  signify 
is  still  doubted  by  some  or  many.  The  area  is  probably 
not  exclusively  motor.  It  seems  to  stand  in  close, 
though  very  possibly  indirect,  connection  with  sensory 
fibres  of  the  general  sense  of  feeling  for  the  whole  sur- 
face of  the  body.  We  have  much  to  learn.  But  it  is 
apparently  safe  to  conclude  that  this  part  of  the  parie- 
tal lobe  of  the  cortex  is  the  seat  of  control  of  voluntary 
movements,  and  that  these  are  controlled  from  special 
areas,  which  may  or  may  not  be  as  distinct  and  local- 
ized as  we  have  thought. 

Our  knowledge  of  the  brain  has  been  greatly  in- 
creased by  the  study  of  diseases  or  injuries  affecting 
limited  portions  of  it.  We  may  say  in  general  that 
injuries  affecting  sensory  centres  or  fibres  result  in 
insensibility  of  a  corresponding  part  of  the  body,  and 
that  injuries  to  motor  centres  or  fibres  result  in  motor 
paralysis  of  certain  muscles. 

But  there  are  areas  of  the  cortex  where  localized 
injuries  produce  neither  local  insensibility  nor  local 
paralysis.  Stimuli  applied  to  these  regions  produce 
neither  movement  nor  any  sign  of  sensation.  These  por- 
tions have  been  called  by  some  the  silent  areas  of  the 
cortex.  There  are  two  of  them.  One  is  the  frontal  lobe 
forming  the  anterior  portion  of  the  cortex ;  the  other 


MAN  IN  THE  LIGHT  OF  EVOLUTION 


35 


lies  just  behind  the  parietal  motor  area,  Meynert's  pro- 
jection area ;  between  it  and  the  visual  occipital  area. 


HUMAN  BRAIN  — LEFT  ASPECT  —  DIAGRAM 


F.  Frontal  Lobe. 
P.  Parietal  Lobe. 
Oc.  Occipital  Lobe. 
As.  A.  I.  Anterior  Association  Area. 
M.  P.  A.  Meynert's  Projection  Area. 
As.  A.  II.  Posterior  Association  Area. 


V.  A.  Visual  Area. 

Aud.  A .  Auditory  Area. 

F2.  Inferior  Frontal  Fissure. 

F.  Rolando's  Fissure. 

S.  Sylvian  Fissure. 


Position  of  Centres  0/  Movements  in  Monkey'' s  Brain 

1.  Movements  of  Trunk.  3.  Movements  of  Foot  and  Toea. 

2.  Movements  of  Thigh  and  Leg.  4.  Movements  of  Arm. 

5.  Movements  of  Face. 

These  silent  areas  of  the  cortex  are  exciting  much 
interest  at  present.  They  are  very  large  in  man,  much 
smaller  in  the  apes,  smaller  still  in  the  carnivora,  and 
scarcely  recognizable  in  rodents.  They  are  apparently 
the  very  youngest  portions  of  the  brain.  We  shall  find 
that  they  mature  very  late  in  the  development  of  the 
individual.  Their  main  use  seems  to  be  to  connect 
other  areas  or  portions  by  means  of  their  bundles  of 
longer  or  shorter  fibres. 


36  GROWTH  AND  EDUCATION 

Flechsig1  has  studied  these  areas  more  carefully, 
perhaps,  than  almost  any  one  else,  and  has  called  them 
areas  of  association.  The  hinder  association  area,  espe- 
cially, is  admirably  situated  to  connect  the  centres  of 
sight  and  hearing  with  the  projection  area.  Flechsig 
thinks  that  this  area  is  the  seat  of  our  most  important 
intellectual  processes.  The  frontal  lobe  or  association 
area  is  in  his  view  the  seat  of  our  moral  perceptions. 
Whether  so  exact  a  localization  of  mental  processes 
will  prove  true  is  still  uncertain.  That  these  two  areas 
are  seats  of  the  higher  mental  processes  seems  almost  sure. 

We  have  already  noticed  that  the  different  centres  of 
the  brain  are  related  to  one  another  much  as  officers 
of  different  rank  in  an  army.2  The  muscles  of  legs  and 
arms  are  controlled  immediately  and  directly  by  centres 
in  the  spinal  marrow.  The  actions  of  these  centres  are 
coordinated  by  the  small  brain.  This,  again,  is  con- 
trolled by  centres  in  the  cerebrum,  whose  headquarters 
are  in  the  cortex.  Similarly  sensory  impulses  are  re- 
ceived first  by  lower  sensory  centres,  then  transmitted, 
probably  often  somewhat  modified,  to  result  in  clear 
perception  when  they  reach  the  cortex. 

The  use  of  the  nervous  system  is  to  insure  a  suitable 
muscular  response  to  sensory  stimuli.  To  reach  the 
muscles  and  accomplish  this  result,  sensory  stimuli 
must  be  "  switched  off  "  on  to  motor  nerves.  The  whole 
system  of  centres  thus  forms  a  great  and  very  complex 
switch-board.  The  impulses  may  leap  from  the  sensory 
to  the  motor  nerves  in  lower  or  in  higher  centres.  I 
rise  and  cross  the  room  to  get  a  book.  The  voluntary 
impulse  to  move  goes  out  from  the  cortex  to  the  cere- 

1  Flechsig,  Gehirn  und  Seele. 

2  Mercier,"  The  Nervous  System  and  the  Mind,  p.  133. 


MAN   IN  THE   LIGHT  OF  EVOLUTION  37 

bellum,  and  this  centre  controls  my  walk  across  the 
room.  The  higher  centre  is  relieved  from  many  or  all 
details  of  the  work,  and  my  mind  is  free  to  think  of 
something  else  at  the  time.  In  some  or  many  reflex 
actions  only  the  lowest  centres  in  the  spinal  marrow 
are  involved.  I  learn  to  walk,  or  ride  a  bicycle,  or  to 
write,  with  much  effort  and  difficulty.  The  highest 
centres  must  give  their  attention  to  the  work.  Later  I 
can  make  all  the  movements  almost  or  quite  without 
thought.  The  work  once  learned  is  carried  on  best  by 
lower  centres.  It  has  been  well  said  that  the  great  aim 
of  education  is  learning  to  do  the  right  thing  at  the 
right  time  without  having  to  think  about  it. 

The  tendency  of  the  lower  centres  is  to  respond  to 
a  stimulus  by  immediate  muscular  action.  The  mode 
of  response  is  the  result  of  our  own  habits  or  of  those 
of  our  ancestors,  and  may  be  correct  and  suitable  in 
a  majority  of  cases.  But  we  begin  to  suspect  that  some 
other  response  or  reaction  may  meet  the  emergency 
better.  We  stop  and  think.  One  great  use  of  the  cere- 
brum is  to  restrain  immediate  response,1  to  allow  the 
motor  impulse  to  go  out  along  a  new  path  and  result 
in  a  new  action.  Thus  we  experiment.  Or  it  may  not 
be  best  to  respond  at  once.  We  must  often  wait  mo- 
ments, or  perhaps  years,  until  the  time  is  ripe.  Here 
is  the  great  danger  of  the  cortex.  It  may  delay  so  as 
not  to  respond  at  all.  So  many  outlets  are  open  to  so 
many  muscles,  resulting  in  so  many  different  lines  of 
action,  that  the  impulse  is  dissipated.  Many  human 
brains  are  like  sponges ;  they  absorb  sensory  stimuli 
indefinitely,  they  discharge  motor  impulses  only  under 
much  pressure. 

1  Mercier,  The  Nervous  System  and  the  Mind,  p.  145. 


38  GROWTH  AND  EDUCATION 

Certain  results  of  our  crude  and  hasty  sketch  are  so 
important  that  we  must  notice  them  even  at  the  risk  of 
some  repetition. 

The  human  body  is  composed  of  many  distinct  systems 
and  organs,  all  indissolubly  united  in  one  organism, 
where  "  every  part  is  at  once  means  and  end  to  every 
other  part."  The  health  and  life  of  the  whole  organism 
may  be  disturbed  or  destroyed  by  the  weakness  of  any 
one  of  these  numerous  parts.  What  we  often  call  the 
lower  organs,  the  viscera,  are  absolutely  essential  to  life, 
and  hence  by  far  the  most  important.  They  are  funda- 
mental as  well  as  essential.  Anything  which  disturbs 
our  digestion  or  the  removal  of  waste  equally  disturbs 
the  clearness  and  vigor  of  our  thought.  Every  part 
must  be  of  the  highest  possible  efficiency.  One  great 
aim  of  education  should  be  to  "  make  the  weakest  part 
as  strong  as  the  rest."  If  there  is  to  be  no  schism  in 
the  body,  the  organs  must  be  properly  balanced  in 
weight  and  power.  Otherwise  the  overgrown  part  robs 
some  other  organ  of  its  fair  share  of  nutriment,  and 
throws  upon  it  burdens  which  it  cannot  bear.  If  any 
part  is,  for  any  reason,  to  be  exposed  to  excessive 
strain,  that  part  must  be  fortified  and  strengthened 
during  its  period  of  growth  in  early  life.  But  every 
other  part  should  be  correspondingly  strengthened  to 
back  it  up  in  its  emergency. 

It  is  hardly  possible  that  in  so  complex  a  being  as 
man,  all  parts  and  organs  should  develop  with  equal 
rapidity  at  one  and  the  same  time.  Evidently  certain 
organs  and  powers  which  are  apparently  dormant  in 
the  infant  are  developing  rapidly  in  childhood  or  youth. 
We  should  expect  to  find  that  there  is  a  special  time 
for  the  rapid  development  of  each  organ.    We  should 


MAN   IN   THE  LIGHT  OF  EVOLUTION  39 

naturally  expect  that  the  more  fundamental  organs,  like 
digestion,  excretion,  and  respiration,  will  develop  early 
to  meet  the  needs  of  other  growing  parts,  and  that 
some  will  be  held  back  to  give  time  and  opportunity 
for  this  important  process.  In  other  words,  there  is  a 
time  for  everything,  and  we  must  find  that  time. 

We  cannot  fail  to  notice  the  immense  amount  of 
time  devoted  by  Nature  to  the  development  of  the  mus- 
cular system.  Why  did  she  linger  so  long  over  it, 
before  going  on  to  the  development  of  the  brain,  espe- 
cially of  the  cortex  with  its  mental  powers  ?  Evidently 
it  must  be  of  far  greater  importance,  and  have  far 
larger  latent  capacities,  than  we  have  usually  supposed. 
The  muscular  system  is  the  strategic  centre,  so  to 
speak,  from  and  through  which  we  can  reach,  exercise, 
and  strengthen  intestine,  lungs,  kidneys,  and  all  the 
organs  essential  to  life,  but  which  are  beyond  the  direct 
control  of  the  will.  Hence  the  sturdy  vigor  of  our  an- 
cestors, and  the  dangers  of  a  sedentary  life. 

But  the  muscular  system  is  the  key  to  the  develop- 
ment of  the  brain,  as  well  as  of  lower  organs.  Nervous 
development  followed  the  increase  of  locomotion  and 
increased  use  of  the  sense-organs,  especially  of  the  eyes. 
Arboreal  life  and  the  use  of  the  hand  were  exceedingly 
important  factors  in  the  development  of  the  cortex.  If 
this  be  true  of  the  development  of  the  species,  it  is 
probably  equally  true  of  the  individual.  Physical  exer- 
cise and  manual  training,  nature-study  and  other  forms 
of  observation,  may  develop  intellectual  power  and 
keenness  in  the  end  more  effectively  than  reading  and 
spelling.  This  view  is  supported  by  the  fact  that  the 
association  centres  —  apparently  the  seat  of  thought  — 
link  together  the  sensory  and  motor  regions  of  the  cor- 


40  GROWTH  AND   EDUCATION 

tex.  We  can  consider  this  question  more  fully  when 
we  study  the  growth  and  development  of  the  brain  in 
the  individual. 

We  have  found  that  different  portions  of  our  mus- 
cular system  have  arisen  at  different  ages,  and  that 
they  grow  younger  as  we  go  out  from  the  trunk  to  the 
ends  of  the  fingers  and  downward  to  the  toes.  The  cen- 
tral and  fundamental  are  older  than  the  peripheral  and 
accessory. 

But  each  group  of  muscles,  of  trunk,  shoulder,  upper 
or  lower  arm,  or  leg,  has  its  own  centres  of  control. 
The  fundamental  muscles  of  trunk,  shoulder,  and  thigh 
are  capable  of  few  movements,  and  these  neither  com- 
plex nor  precise.  The  muscles  of  the  hand,  and  espe- 
cially of  the  fingers,  are  capable  of  a  great  variety  of 
combination  of  movements.  Hence  it  is  to  be  expected — 
and  this  seems  to  be  supported  by  the  facts  of  anatomy 
—  that  the  centres  controlling  the  fundamental  muscles 
would  be  comparatively  simple,  composed  of  relatively 
few  cells  with  simple  combinations.  These  cells  must 
be  large  and  strong,  for  they  stimulate  heavy  masses 
of  large  fibres.  Centres  controlling  the  accessory  mus- 
cles of  hand  and  fingers  must  be  composed  of  a  very 
large  number  of  cells.  These  must  be  able  to  combine 
in  a  great  variety  of  ways,  corresponding  to  the  variety 
of  hand  and  finger  movements  ;  hence  the  centre  is 
very  complex.  The  cells  stimulate  small  and  fine  mus- 
cles ;  hence  they  will  be  correspondingly  small  and  deli- 
cate. The  fundamental  centres,  like  their  muscles,  are 
older,  tougher,  and  of  greater  endurance ;  the  younger 
centres  of  the  accessory  muscles  are  not  only  more  deli- 
cate, but  weaker  and  more  easily  exhausted. 

Therefore  we  are  not  surprised  to  find  that  the  best 


MAN  IN  THE  LIGHT  OF  EVOLUTION  41 

physiologists  insist  upon  the  fullest  possible  develop- 
ment of  these  fundamental  centres.  They  are  the  seats 
of  endurance  which  enable  us  to  hold  out  against  the 
strain  of  modern  life,  especially  in  the  hurry  and  fret 
of  our  great  cities.  They  must  be  strengthened  at  all 
cost  in  the  children  of  parents  who  show  any  signs  or 
traces  of  nervous  weakness,  in  all  the  children  of  the 
business  and  professional  classes,  and  in  those  children 
who  will  later  enter  these  lines  of  work.  The  high-strung 
American  girl  needs  this  preventive  and  developing 
treatment  more  than  any  other  form  or  kind  of  educa- 
tion. No  child  can  have  too  much  of  it,  and  in  every 
case  it  is  far  better  to  have  full  enough  than  too 
little. 

*  In  one  word,  if  we  would  fortify  the  nervous  sys- 
tem of  the  child  so  that  it  will  not  collapse  in  nervous 
prostration  under  the  strain  of  modern  life,  we  must 
encourage  him  to  use  the  heavy  muscles  of  trunk, 
legs,  and  shoulders.  He  must  run,  jump,  throw  ball,  and 
tussle  with  his  mates.  We  shall  find  reason  to  believe 
that  the  most  profitable  period  for  this  exercise  is  when 
the  child  is  in  the  kindergarten  or  lower  school  grades.1 
Charts  i  and  n  summarize  some  of  the  most  impor- 
tant events  of  our  study  in  this  chapter. 

Chart  I  gives  us  the  succession  in  the  development 
of  organs.  Column  A  gives  us  a  brief  series  of  stages 
which  will  suggest  approximately,  though  not  exactly, 
those  through  which  our  ancestors  in  all  probability 
passed.  Column  B  shows  the  most  important  feature 
of  their  progress  at  each  stage.    Column  C  shows  what 

1  Hartwell,  Physical  Training ;  Report  of  Com.  of  Ed.  U.  S.  1903, 
i,  724  ;  Report  of  Director  of  Physical  Training,  Boston,  School  Doc. 
no.  8,  p.  40;  Ross,  Diseases  of  the  Nervous  System. 


42 


GROWTH  AND   EDUCATION 


functions  or  organs  were  called  into  being  or  stimulated 
to  a  higher  development  by  the  leading  function  given 


ANIMAL  DEVELOPMENT 


A 

B 

c 

STAGES. 

DEVELOPMENT  OF 

RELATED  FUNCTIONS 
OB  ORGANS. 

ILLUSTRATION 

Protozoa 

Cell 

Amboea 

Zoophyte 

Digestion.   Reproduction 

Hydra 

Worms 

Locomotion 

Respiration.  Excretion 

Earthworms 

Circulation 

Annelids 

(Spinal  Marrow) 

Sense-Organs 

(Brain) 

Fish 

Fins  and  Eyes 

Cerebellum.   Mid-brain 

Sharks 

Reptiles 

Legs  and  Smell 

"              Cortex 

Lizards 

Lower  Mammals 

"      "    Senses 

"     Meynert's  Area 

Cat.   Dog 

Arboreal    " 

Hands "       " 

Cortex,  esp.  Association 
Areas 

Apes 

Man 

Mental  Powers 

Association  Areas 

CHART  I 


Relationship    of    Organs 

Muscles  of 
Trunk 


Thought  etc. 


Sense-Organs 

Mid- Brain 
Legs  and  Arms  vParts  of  Cerebrum 

**^  Meynerts  Area* 
Hands  =  Association  Areas  V  Cortex 


CHART  II 


in  B.  The  protozoa  developed  the  single  cell  or  grouped 
these  cells  in  colonies  with  no  tissues  or  true  organs. 
During  the  zoophytic  stage  the  digestive  and  reproduct- 


MAN   IN  THE  LIGHT  OF  EVOLUTION  43 

ive  organs  were  started.  Worms  introduced  muscular 
locomotion.  This  step  in  advance  was  accompanied  by 
the  development  of  the  respiratory,  excretory,  and  circu- 
latory organs,  represented  in  our  bodies  by  lungs,  kid- 
neys, and  heart  and  blood-vessels. 

Swifter  locomotion  called  forth  the  higher  sense- 
organs,  which  reacted  on  the  foremost  ganglion  of  the 
body,  and  stimulated  its  development  into  a  brain.  At 
the  same  time  the  muscles  were  doing  a  similar  work 
toward  the  development  of  a  spinal  marrow,  though 
brain  and  spinal  marrow  do  not  actually  appear  until 
the  time  of  vertebrates.  The  development  of  the  ap- 
pendages called  out  the  cerebellum  ;  and  their  higher 
use  in  mammals  developed  Meynert's  projection  area 
in  the  cortex,  which  had  arisen  in  consequence  of  the 
greater  use  of  the  sense  of  smell.  The  cortex  develops 
steadily  through  mammals.  The  association  areas  be- 
come large  in  arboreal  mammals,  and  culminate  as  the 
mental  centres  of  man 

But  the  succession  in  origin  of  these  different  parts 
or  systems  is  not  as  important  to  us  as  their  mutual  re- 
lationships. These,  beginning  with  the  appearance  of 
muscles,  are  shown  in  Chart  n.  The  organs  fall  into 
small  groups,  whose  members  are  very  closely  related 
to  each  other.  A  close  physiological  relationship  is 
shown  in  the  chart  by  a  double  line.  Digestion  and 
reproduction  developed  side  by  side,  and  are  closely 
related  in  that  the  amount  devoted  to  reproduction  is 
determined  to  a  large  extent  by  the  amount  of  nutri- 
ment furnished  by  the  digestive  organs.  The  develop- 
ment of  the  heavy  fundamental  muscles  necessitated  and 
stimulated  the  development  of  our  vital  organs  :  heart, 
lungs,  and  kidneys.    These  form  a  closely  related  group. 


44  GROWTH  AND  EDUCATION 

Muscular  exercise  is  still  necessary  for  the  development 
and  maintenance  of  these  organs  in  the  individual  man 
or  child.  They  respond  to  muscular  stimuli  as  they 
never  do  to  those  of  the  brain.  An  hour's  brisk  walk  in 
the  cool  air  arouses  them  all ;  but  an  hour's  hard  men- 
tal work  has  very  small  effect  upon  them. 

Indirectly  muscular  locomotion  favored  the  develop- 
ment of  sense-organs.  The  cerebellum  arose  with  the 
development  of  the  appendages,  and  the  mid-brain  and 
certain  areas  of  the  cortex  with  the  use  of  the  higher 
senses.  Here  we  have  two  partnerships  developing  side 
by  side.  The  use  of  the  legs  and  of  the  sense-organs  is 
still  essential  to  the  development  of  these  portions  of 
the  brain  in  every  individual.  We  find  it  universally 
true  that  organs  which  arose  at  the  same  time,  and 
either  mutually  dependent  or  one  depending  upon  the 
other,  always  retain  the  original  relation  or  depend- 
ence, at  least  for  their  healthy  development  in  the 
individual. 

Have  we  any  reason  to  believe  that  the  association 
areas,  the  special  if  not  sole  seats  of  the  mental  powers, 
are  any  exception  to  this  rule?  Their  origin  was  stim- 
ulated by  the  development  of  the  arms,  and  more  es- 
pecially the  hands,  with  the  sense-organs.  Their  fibres 
connect  sensory  and  motor  areas.  Is  not  the  exercise 
and  development  of  sense-organs  and  hands  essential 
to  their  early  growth  and  development,  as  heart  and 
lungs  require  the  stimuli  of  muscular  exercise  for  their 
healthy  growth?  Can  we  afford  to  neglect  these  original 
and  essential  stimuli,  and  depend  solely  or  largely  upon 
the  far  younger  and  later  mental  stimuli  to  promote 
the  early  and  essential  growth  of  the  substance  and 
tissues  of  these  centres? 


MAN  IN  THE  LIGHT  OF  EVOLUTION  46 

What  we  call  our  brain  has  been  builded  by  suc- 
cessive additions  at  very  different  periods  of  geological 
history.  Medulla,  cerebellum,  mid-brain,  and  the  basal 
ganglia  of  the  cerebrum,  are  old.  They  may  all  date 
from  early  palaeozoic  time.  The  cortex  is  far  younger, 
and  its  portions  are  of  different  ages.  The  association 
areas  very  probably  did  not  arise  until  well  on  in  ter- 
tiary or  cenozoic  time.  They  are  still  far  from  their 
final  and  complete  stage. 

Our  brain  is  much  like  the  fortress-palaces  so  common 
and  striking  in  certain  parts  of  France.  Their  founda- 
tions are  old,  heavy,  and  strong;  capable  of  resisting 
anything  except  modern  artillery.  The  successive  addi- 
tions grow  steadily  lighter,  more  complex,  more  grace- 
ful, and  better  fitted  for  a  higher  civilization. 

So  the  old  fundamental  centres  are  the  fortress- 
foundations  of  the  brain,  the  seats  of  endurance  and 
resistance.  If  they  are  neglected  or  incompletely  de- 
veloped, the  whole  brain  structure  totters  or  collapses. 
They,  far  more  than  the  higher  centres,  claim  and 
require  our  attention  throughout  childhood.  In  late 
childhood  or  adolescence  we  can  develop  the  finer 
powers. 

We  see  clearly  that  mental  exercise  of  a  logical  sort 
has  added  only  the  finishing  touches  to  the  develop- 
ment of  the  brain.  It  originated  as  a  switch-board 
between  sensory  stimuli  and  muscular  movement.  It 
is  still  a  part  of  the  great  neuro-muscular  system. 
Brain  and  muscle  are  never  divorced  in  the  action  of 
healthy  higher  animals  or  of  healthy  men.  They  should 
not  be  divorced  in  the  education  of  the  child.  God  has 
joined  them  together;  let  not  man  by  any  artificial 
system  put  them  asunder. 


46  GROWTH   AND  EDUCATION 

The  intellect,  especially  the  logical  power,  is  the 
latest  evolved  function  of  the  brain.  Our  system  of 
education  is  in  great  danger  of  making  it  the  spoiled 
child  in  the  family  of  powers  which  make  up  the  man. 
Emotion  is  older  than  thought;  the  heart  than  the 
head.  If  the  individual  recapitulates  at  all  the  devel- 
opment of  the  race,  if  the  older  powers  are  fundamen- 
tal and  essential,  we  should  expect  that  feeling  or 
emotion  must  play  a  most  important  role  in  human 
life,  and  that  its  proper  exercise  should  form  a  corre- 
spondingly important  part  in  every  true  system  of 
education. 

We  have  seen  in  our  study  of  human  evolution  that 
parts  and  organs  were  added  successively  to  very  small 
and  simple  beginnings.  The  first  organs  to  take  form 
were  those  which  were  absolutely  essential  to  life.  The 
digestive  system  is  the  foundation  of  the  whole  body. 
Then  masses  of  muscles  appeared  and  were  used  for  loco- 
motion. Their  rise  was  attended  or  soon  followed  by  the 
development  of  respiratory,  excretory,  and  circulatory 
organs.  But  the  muscular  system  is  very  complex,  and 
its  parts  are  of  very  different  ages.  The  muscles  of  the 
trunk  are  exceedingly  old.  Those  of  shoulder  and  thigh, 
of  arm  and  leg,  followed  successively.  Hand  and  fingers 
took  their  present  form  last  of  all.  It  was  primarily  the 
use  of  the  heavy  fundamental  muscles  which  stimulated 
the  growth  and  development  of  the  internal  vital  organs. 

Each  addition  to  the  muscular  system  was  accom- 
panied by  the  addition  of  new  centres  in  the  brain.  The 
younger  centres  are  far  more  complex  and  delicate  than 
the  older.  The  development  of  the  hand  stimulated  the 
development  of  the  higher  intellectual  centres  in  the 
brain. 


MAN  IN  THE  LIGHT  OF  EVOLUTION  47 

The  muscular  system  has  thus  been  the  key  and 
dominating  centre  for  the  development  of  all  the  organs 
of  the  body  from  distant  ages  until  man  came  upon  the 
stage  and  the  reign  of  muscle  gave  place  to  that  of 
mind.  We  must  not  forget  also  the  influence  of  the 
sense-organs  in  stimulating  brain  development. 

The  development  of  the  child  is  crudely  and  imper- 
fectly parallel  to  the  evolution  of  the  human  species. 
Hence  the  essential  vital  organs  are  the  first  to  be- 
come efficient.  Their  growth  and  development  is  aided 
by  the  exercise  of  the  heavy  muscles  of  trunk,  legs, 
and  arms.  The  exercise  of  these  muscles  stimulates 
also  the  growth  and  development  of  the  fundamental 
nervous  centres  in  the  brain.  This  fortifies  the  nervous 
system  against  all  forms  of  nervous  weakness  and  col- 
lapse. Nervous  prostration  must  be  prevented  by  phys- 
ical exercise  in  the  kindergarten  and  lower  grades. 
Here  the  foundations  of  power  must  be  laid  deep  and 
strong.  At  this  age  strength  is  more  important  than 
grace  or  beauty.  ^ 

The  child  during  its  earlier  years  should  be  educated 
far  more  through  the  muscles  and  sense-organs  than 
directly  through  the  brain.  Hand  and  eye  are  now 
more  efficient  means  of  intellectual  development  than 
thought  or  even  memory. 

The  young  child  is  largely  an  animal.  The  higher 
mental  powers  which  characterize  man  do  not  appear 
until  about  the  period  of  puberty.  Our  chief  aim  should 
be  to  keep  him  a  healthy  animal,  and  to  promote  the 
growth  of  the  fundamental  organs  and  powers,  which 
alone  can  form  a  firm  and  stable  support  for  all  later 
additions  and  improvements. 

If  we  will  bear  these  facts  in  mind,  and  recognize 


48  GROWTH  AND   EDUCATION 

them  in  planning  our  system  of  education,  we  can  have 
the  aid  and  cooperation  of  Nature  at  every  step.  The 
old  system  of  education  on  the  farm  was  very  largely 
such  a  natural  system.  The  child  was  educated  mainly 
through  his  muscles  and  his  sense-organs.  Such  a  sys- 
tem may  seem  to  us  very  crude  and  incomplete.  But 
with  the  cooperation  of  Nature  it  became  marvelously 
effective.  We  must  regain  the  cooperation  of  Nature, 
if  our  present  system  is  to  be  nearly  as  successful  and 
beneficent.  We  must  in  some  way  gain  a  clearer  insight 
into  her  laws  of  growth  and  development.  We  shall 
hope  to  gain  some  knowledge  of  these  by  our  study  of 
embryology. 


CHAPTER  III 

HINTS   FROM   EMBRYOLOGY 

In  this  chapter  we  can  notice  but  a  very  few  of  the 
most  important  facts  of  embryology,  and  these  only  in 
so  far  as  they  throw  light  on  growth  and  education. 

If  you  look  at  an  egg  dropped  on  toast  or  poached, 
you  will  notice  a  lighter  spot  on  the  yolk,  about  as  big 
as  the  end  of  a  small  lead-pencil,  which  looks  as  if 
some  one  had  blistered  it  with  a  hot  iron.  It  is  a  disk 
like  a  watch-crystal,  composed  of  a  multitude  of  cells. 
Development  in  a  fresh  egg  has  already  gone  far 
beyond  the  stage  of  the  single  cell,  of  which  every  egg 
consists  at  first.  This  is  an  embryo  chicken,  without 
a  single  organ,  and  with  hardly  a  tissue  except  the  two 
distinct  layers  of  which  it  consists. 

Soon  the  embryo  becomes  elliptical  or  shield-shaped, 
and  we  find  a  rod  running  lengthwise  through  its 
middle  line.  This  is  the  notochord,  the  beginning  of 
the  vertebrate  skeleton.  Just  above  and  parallel  to 
the  notochord  a  tube  appears,  the  beginning  of  brain 
and  spinal  marrow.  We  can  gain  a  fair  idea  of  the 
position  of  these  two  organs,  if  we  thrust  two  hatpins 
through  a  griddle-cake  parallel  to  its  diameter  and  to 
each  other. 

Then  two  series  of  segments  or  blocks  appear,  one 
on  each  side  of  the  notochord.  From  these  two  rows  of 
blocks  the  vertebrae  and  muscles  will  later  arise.  The 
sides  of  the  disk  are  tucked  under,  and  meet,  and  unite 


50  GROWTH  AND   EDUCATION 

beneath  to  form  the  tubular  vertebrate  body.  Then  legs 
and  wings  appear,  looking  for  a  time  like  short  stubby- 
flippers,  in  which  joints  and  fingers  and  toes  will  arise 
later.  Slowly  and  gradually  the  eye  is  built,  the  brain 
shaped,  the  face  moulded.  For  some  time  the  head  is 
shaped  much  like  that  of  a  lizard.  Until  far  on  in  em- 
bryonic>life  it  is  difficult  or  impossible  to  tell  whether 
we  are  looking  at  the  embryo  of  a  bird  or  of  a  reptile. 

How  does  the  egg-cell  ever  find  its  way  through  this 
vast  embryonic  journey  ?  How  did  it  ever  learn  to  shape 
and  frame  a  skeleton,  to  string  the  muscles,  and  to  spin 
the  marvelous  cobweb  of  nerves  running  to  every  part 
of  the  body,  and  connecting  it  with  exactly  the  right 
point  in  the  brain  ?  It  is  a  most  marvelous  fact  that  an 
egg  hatches  into  a  chicken.  We  know  only  that  Nature 
under  favorable  conditions  always  brings  a  chicken, 
never  anything  else,  out  of  a  hen's  egg ;  and  that  the 
chicken  is  usually  healthy. 

AH  this  work  is  done  within  a  shell.  Nature  seems  to 
say :  "  Keep  your  clumsy  fingers  off.  If  you  touch  the 
thing,  you  '11  spoil  it."  And  she  is  quite  right.  Here 
we  cannot  help  her  at  all.  Our  interference  would  be 
disastrous. 

But  if  we  could  watch  the  development  of  a  chicken, 
we  should  be  inclined  to  interfere  more  than  once.  At 
a  certain  stage  of  development  slits  appear  looking  like 
little  buttonholes,  and  extending  from  the  outer  sur- 
face of  the  neck  through  to  the  pharynx  or  rear  por- 
tion of  the  mouth.  A  single  one  of  these  will  remain 
as  our  Eustachian  tube.  They  evidently  correspond  to 
the  gill-slits  of  a  fish.  Cartilaginous  rods  and  branches 
of  the  aorta  form  between  these. 

All  these  structures  and  the  general  form  of  heart 


HINTS  FROM  EMBRYOLOGY  51 

and  brain,  as  also  the  arrangement  of  the  great  veins 
of  the  body,  are  at  this  stage  almost  exactly  as  in  fish, 
not  at  all  as  in  birds.  We  are  inclined  to  think  that 
Nature  has  lost  her  way  completely.  But  she  smooths 
over  and  closes  the  unnecessary  gill-slits,  remodels  or 
removes  the  cartilaginous  arches,  reduces  the  number  of 
branches  of  the  aorta,  and  regains  the  line  of  develop- 
ment leading  to  the  bird.  The  ease  and  careless  aban- 
don with  which  she  works  in  forming  embryos  is  posi- 
tively refreshing.  She  seems  to  say  :  "  Do  not  worry 
about  a  little  thing  like  a  few  extra  gill-slits  and  arte- 
ries. I  can  straighten  that  out  easily  enough.  I  have 
made  millions  of  chickens,  and  they  always  come  out 
right.    Leave  that  to  me." 

Later  she  seems  to  lose  her  way  again,  and  builds  a 
lizard's  tail  on  the  rear  end  of  the  chicken.  No  chicken 
ever  had  such  a  tail  with  so  many  vertebrae.  She  shoves 
some  of  them  forward  into  the  pelvis,  moulds  the  hind- 
most together  into  a  solid  mass,  and  makes  a  chicken's 
tail. 

Nature  usually  attains  her  end,  but  she  very  fre- 
quently reaches  it  by  a  roundabout,  and  apparently 
aimless,  course.  She  often  seems  to  blunder.  But  we 
cannot  stop  her  or  guide  her.  She  must  have  her  own 
way,  and  she  will  probably  come  out  right.  We  cannot 
help  her  much  here. 

If  we  are  wise,  we  would  not  interfere,  if  we  could. 
For  when  the  individual  fowl  starts  its  existence  as  a 
single  cell,  and  proceeds  to  develop  into  a  bird,  its  most 
natural  if  not  its  only  possible  course  is  to  follow  in 
general  the  same  line  along  which  its  ancestors  plodded 
in  their  upward  progress  through  the  ages  of  biological 
history.    The  bird  must  pass  through  stages  very  simi- 


52  GROWTH  AND   EDUCATION 

lar,  at  least,  to  those  of  fish  and  reptile.  Of  earlier 
stages  it  may  give  but  slight  hints.  It  hurries  as  fast  as 
it  can,  and  avails  itself  of  a  short  cut  wherever  this  is 
possible.  But  some,  especially  of  the  later  stages,  per- 
sist with  remarkable  pertinacity  and  distinctness. 

Sometimes  young  are  born  with  anything  but  the 
adult  form  and  structure,  and  a  metamorphosis  follows 
birth.  The  butterfly  is  born  a  caterpillar,  and  the 
beetle,  a  grub.  Remember  President  Hall's  illustration 
drawn  from  the  tadpole.  The  tadpole  has  a  long  tail 
like  that  of  a  fish.  When  it  has  gained  legs,  it  absorbs 
the  tail  and  comes  out  a  frog.  You  may  hasten  Nature 
by  cutting  off  the  tadpole's  tail.  You  thus  make  a  frog 
in  a  hurry.  But  you  spoil  a  good  tadpole,  and  you  do 
not  get  a  normal  frog. 

Provisional  structures,  gill-slits  in  birds,  and  tadpoles' 
tails  are  a  sort  of  scaffolding  by  which  the  adult  struc- 
ture is  to  be  builded.  More  than  this,  the  provisional 
structure  is  often  essential  to  stimulate  the  surrounding 
tissue  to  produce  organs  of  great  permanent  value. 

The  embryonic  notochord  is  going  to  disappear,  but 
it  seems  necessary  to  stimulate  the  surrounding  tissue  to 
produce  the  backbone.  Repress  the  one,  and  you  will 
fail  to  gain  the  other.  The  gill-slits  will  disappear.  But 
they  may  be  necessary  to  stimulate  the  formation  of 
branchial  rods,  out  of  which  our  jaws  and  hyoid  bone 
are  to  develop.  If  the  growth  of  the  lower,  temporary 
structure  is  hindered  or  prevented,  the  higher  and  per- 
manent organ  suffers  correspondingly. 

Where  there  is  a  metamorphosis,  the  ancestral  and 
the  provisional  stages  and  structures  are  often  even 
more  distinct  than  in  embryonic  development.  Nature's 
course  is  even  more  roundabout  than  before.    But  her 


HINTS  FROM  EMBRYOLOGY  53 

care  for  the  young  does  not  cease  at  birth.  For  a  longer 
or  shorter  time  after  birth  you  must  allow  her  to  have 
her  own  way,  and  to  follow  her  own  course. 

What  we  have  said  of  the  embryonic  development 
of  the  chick  applies  equally  well  to  the  human  embryo. 
And  the  baby  undergoes  a  metamorphosis  just  as  really 
as  does  the  tadpole.  The  child  is  no  more  a  pocket 
edition  of  a  man  than  a  tadpole  is  a  miniature  frog. 
Nature  must,  and  can,  and  will,  finish  the  one  as  the 
other,  in  her  own  way.  Here  again  unwise  interference 
may  work  great  and  permanent  harm.  We  rarely  hesi- 
tate to  trust  Nature  to  finish  tadpoles  and  chickens. 
We  equally  rarely  allow  her  to  have  her  own  way  with 
the  child. 

The  child  is  naturally  successively  animal,  anthro- 
poid, half -barbarian,  and  then  civilized.  If,  when  Nature 
intends  him  to  be  an  animal,  we  try  to  make  a  saint  or 
a  sage  of  him,  we  are  acting  about  as  wisely  as  when  we 
try  to  make  a  frog  by  decaudating  a  tadpole.  In  both 
cases  we  work  permanent  harm  with  the  very  best 
intentions.  If  we  regard  the  lower  stage  as  useless  or 
pernicious,  if  we  try  to  repress  or  obliterate  it,  we  are 
knocking  out  the  rounds  of  the  ladder  up  which,  with 
Nature's  assistance,  the  child  is  climbing  to  manhood. 
The  barbarous  stage  is  just  as  really  a  stimulus  to  the 
development  of  the  strong  adult  as  the  notochord  is  the 
necessary  stimulus  to  the  formation  of  a  backbone.  In 
her  own  good  time  Nature  will  carry  the  child  out  of  the 
lower  stage,  as  she  has  brought  him  up  to  and  into  it. 

Whatever  may  be  true  at  a  later  stage,  it  would  seem 
to  be  a  fair  deduction  from  facts  that  in  training  the 
young  child  we  can  only  furnish  natural  conditions, 
and  that  then  we  must  trust  the  rest  to  Nature.  We 


54  GROWTH  AND  EDUCATION 

can  furnish  stimuli,  but  the  stimuli  must  be  suited  to  the 
capacities  and  to  the  stage  of  development  of  the  child. 
Above  all,  during  these  earlier  years  we  must  follow 
Nature  with  care  and  docility.  We  must  not  try  to 
coerce,  or  hamper,  or  hurry  her.  Otherwise  harm  will 
surely  result. 

It  is  evident  that  such  a  being  as  man  cannot  be 
builded  in  a  day.  Provisional  organs,  structures,  and 
habits  must  wax  and  wane.  Systems  must  be  fully  de- 
veloped, correlated,  and  adjusted,  so  that  the  lower  will 
support  the  higher.  Similarly  in  our  nervous  system 
the  fundamental  portions  must  have  time  and  oppor- 
tunity for  growth  and  development.  Incomplete  devel- 
opment of  the  lower  part  means  weakness  or  arrest  of 
development  in  the  higher. 

First  a  low  and  rude  instinct  appears,  suited  to  the 
plane  of  life.  This  gives  rise  to  a  habit.  The  habit 
arouses  a  new  instinct,  and  this  in  turn  a  new  habit.  The 
maturing  of  a  new  system  requires  a  readjustment  of  old 
habits  and  methods  of  life.  All  these  changes  must 
follow  one  another  in  proper  order  and  sequence,  if  we 
are  to  have  a  healthy  mental  development.  We  are  just 
beginning  to  discover  that  many  childish  instincts,  which 
have  been  despised  as  useless  or  degrading,  are  essen- 
tial to  the  attainment  of  a  ripe,  strong,  adult  manhood.1 

We  must  be  patient.  The  fish-like  or  reptilian  stage 
of  the  chicken  is  not  very  promising ;  we  must  not  ex- 
pect a  child  in  the  tadpole  stage  to  show  the  agility  or 
precision  of  action  of  the  adult.  He  is  living  in  a  dif- 
ferent medium,  in  a  world  and  age  of  his  own.  Let 
him  conform  to  it  for  the  present.  Whenever  the  Bible 
speaks  of  the  childhood  of  its  great  heroes  and  leaders, 

1  James,  Psychology,  Briefer  Course,  p.  402. 


HINTS  FROM  EMBRYOLOGY  55 

it  usually  says  merely :  "  The  child  grew  and  waxed 
strong." 

We  have  seen  that  the  human  body  is  an  exceed- 
ingly complex  structure.  Many  organs  must  originate, 
grow,  develop,  and  be  coordinated  and  adjusted  in  one 
body.  We  often  forget  or  underestimate  the  import- 
ance of  growth.  If  any  organ  is  undersized  it  is  a 
source  of  weakness  in  the  body.  This  is  evident  of 
heart  and  lungs,  but  equally  true  of  all  organs.  Bone 
and  muscle  must  grow  well  in  the  child  before  they  can 
be  developed  and  hardened  by  the  boy  and  girl.  Fail- 
ure to  attain  complete  growth  is  as  bad  as  arrest  of 
development,  or  even  worse.  If  in  any  way  we  could 
increase  the  growth  of  all  our  organs  ten  per  cent,  we 
should  attain  extraordinary  power.  A  slight  increase 
of  strength  of  muscle  or  brain  often  or  usually  means 
great  superiority  in  efficiency.  Hence  any  knowledge 
of  the  laws  of  growth  is  of  the  greatest  importance  to 
the  student  of  education. 

Growth  is  evidently  a  slow  process  and  demands 
time.  The  complexity  of  the  human  body  is  the  expla- 
nation of  the  great  length  of  childhood.  Nature  always 
hurries  the  development  of  the  individual  as  much  as 
she  safely  can.  She  takes  a  short  cut  wherever  this  is 
possible.  It  is  neither  wise  nor  safe  to  attempt  to  hurry 
her  still  more,  and  to  crowd  into  childhood  actions  and 
processes  which  properly  belong  to  youth.  Something 
fundamental  and  essential  will  surely  be  crowded  out. 

Many  organs  must  find  time  for  growth.  All  do  not 
mature  at  the  same  time.  All  are  not  growing  with 
equal  rapidity  at  the  same  time.  The  internal  vital 
organs  grow  rapidly  during  embryonic  life  and  infancy, 
and  are  relatively  large  and  mature  during  childhood. 


56  GROWTH  AND  EDUCATION 

The  muscles  mature  in  the  order  of  their  origin ;  the 
fundamental  first,  the  accessory  later.  Their  periods 
of  acceleration  of  growth  are  successive.  Some  parts  of 
the  brain  grow  and  mature  early,  others  later.  Growth 
is  usually  successive  and  by  parts.  Nature  accelerates 
the  growth  first  of  one  organ  or  part  and  then  of 
another.  We  cannot  overestimate  the  importance  of 
this  fact.  We  cannot  change  the  order  of  succession  in 
growth. 

An  even  more  important  fact  is  that  we  can  do 
much  to  promote  growth  or  to  hamper  it.  Every  organ 
passes  through  three  stages  in  the  course  of  its  develop- 
ment. The  first  is  a  stage  of  pure  growth.  The  organ 
or  part  is  enlarging  as  rapidly  as  possible  by  the  multi- 
plication or  growth  of  its  cells.  These  contain  large 
amounts  of  water.  The  substance  of  the  tissue  is  still 
in  the  process  of  formation,  or  is  being  shaped  and 
moulded.  All  the  energy  which  the  cells  can  possibly 
,  produce  is  needed  for  these  formative  processes.  The 
tissue  is  so  immature  that  it  cannot  perform  the  func- 
tion which  it  will  later  discharge.  At  this  stage  exer- 
cise is  unnecessary  and  injurious.  The  organ  should 
be  left  to  Nature.    Growth  is  its  whole  business. 

In  the  second  stage  growth  is  still  of  prime  import- 
ance. But  now  exercise  is  essential,  for  without  it 
growth  declines  or  ceases.  The  exercise  must  be  suited 
in  kind,  amount,  and  degree  to  the  condition  of  the 
organ.  We  do  not  yet  ask,  How  much  can  the  organ 
do  or  bear  without  positive  and  evident  injury  ?  but, 
What  and  how  much  exercise  will  best  promote  healthy 
growth  ?  The  child  runs  and  climbs  trees.  His  muscles 
are  doing  a  great  deal  of  work.  But  we  should  never 
admit   that  this  is  an  argument  for  child-labor.    We 


HINTS  FROM  EMBRYOLOGY  57 

know  that  that  would  surely  dwarf  and  stunt  him. 
The  kind  of  exercise  is  as  important  as  the  amount. 
>  In  the  third  stage  the  organ  is  approaching  maturity. 
It  is  receiving  its  finishing  touches.  Soon  further  change 
will  be  impossible.  Now  is  the  time  for  more  severe 
training.  The  power  of  endurance  of  strain  can  gradu- 
ally be  increased.  Much  productive  work  may  rightly 
be  expected  and  required. 

Evidently  most  of  the  organs  of  the  infant  and  young 
child  are  attaining  the  second  stage  of  development.  But 
much  of  the  muscular  system  and  a  still  larger  part  of 
the  brain  are  in  the  first.  During  childhood  the  differ- 
ent muscles  and  the  sensory  and  motor  centres  of  the 
brain  successively  pass  through  the  second  stage.  But 
the  highest  centres  of  the  brain  have  hardly  emerged 
from  the  stage  of  pure  growth. 

How  are  we  to  know  when  an  organ  is  ready  for  and 
requires  exercise  ?  We  have  seen  that  the  brain  is  a  whole 
hierarchy  of  centres,  some  maturing  early,  others  very 
late.  The  same  is  true  to  a  certain  extent  of  the  mus- 
cular system.  Moreover,  the  change  from  one  stage  to 
another  is  gradual  or  imperceptible. 

Here  again  Nature  will  give  us  clear  and  trustworthy 
suggestions,  if  we  will  only  seek  and  heed  them.  When  a 
child  cries  from  hunger,  it  evidently  needs  food.  When 
it  has  eaten  enough  of  plain,  simple  food,  the  craving  is 
stilled,  and  the  hunger  ceases.  The  appetite  or  craving 
is  a  clear  and  unmistakable  symptom  of  the  bodily  con- 
dition and  needs. 

So  with  the  cravings  of  the  muscular  system.  We 
notice  the  restlessness  of  young  children,  and  that  they 
tire  quickly.  Their  fundamental  muscles  require  large 
amounts  of    exercise,    but   in  small   doses   frequently 


58  GROWTH   AND  EDUCATION 

repeated  through  the  day.  This  craving  is  entirely- 
reasonable  and  beneficent.  We  do  not  heed  it  as  we 
should. 

Similarly  the  sensory,  motor,  and  mental  centres  in 
the  brain  crave  exercise  successively.  These  cravings 
of  the  higher  centres  appear  in  the  form  of  the  child's 
interests.  Hence  his  succession  of  interests  is  just  as 
really  based  on  physiological  conditions  and  laws  as 
hunger  or  craving  for  muscular  exercise. 

We  sometimes  think  that  it  makes  little  or  no  differ- 
ence what  a  child  is  doing  as  long  as  he  is  kept  busy. 
This  is  surely  wrong.  He  ought  at  this  age  to  be  doing 
what  Nature  bids  him  do,  what  he  does  naturally.  In 
other  words, — pardon  the  repetition,  —  we  must  follow 
Nature's  suggestions,  and  suit  our  exercises,  whether 
physical  or  mental,  to  the  cravings  or  interests  of  the 
child. 

Perhaps  the  child  is  hungry  to  run,  and  we  deem  it 
better  for  him  to  sit  still  and  try  to  think.  We  are 
attempting  to  exercise  a  centre  in  the  brain  which  is  in 
a  stage  of  pure  growth.  The  exercise  does  little  or  no 
good,  it  may  do  some  or  considerable  harm.  At  the 
same  time  we  are  depriving  the  muscles  of  exercise 
which  is  absolutely  essential  to  them.  We  neglect  or 
fail  to  exercise  the  sensory  and  motor  centres  in  the 
brain,  and  wonder  that  the  development  of  the  higher 
centres  is  not  more  complete  and  harmonious.  We  for- 
get that  the  finer  muscles  and  the  higher  nervous  centres 
require  for  their  own  development  the  highest  possible 
efficiency  and  exercise  of  the  fundamental  parts. 

Hence  precocity  is  to  be  feared  and  avoided,  espe- 
cially in  children  of  business  and  professional  men,  and 
in  our  cities.    It  means  that  some  essential  stage  of 


HINTS  FROM  EMBRYOLOGY  59 

growth  or  development  is  being  neglected  or  overleaped. 
It  can  result  only  in  a  defective  or  ill-balanced  body  or 
mind. 

As  the  child  grows  into  youth,  Nature  looses  one 
after  another  of  the  leading-strings  by  which  she  has 
held  him  in  a  narrow  path  or  groove.  Slowly  and 
gradually  she  gives  him  the  opportunity  and  trains  him 
to  judge  and  choose  for  himself.  He  cannot  follow  all 
the  careers  or  grasp  all  the  opportunities  of  life.  He 
must  select  that  which  fits  his  own  powers  or  aptitudes. 
He  must  not  specialize  so  early  as  to  narrow  his  mental 
development.  But  individual  differences  and  prefer- 
ences will  become  more  and  more  marked.  Now  we 
can  and  should  begin  to  tempt  and  draw  him  to  share 
our  very  best  interests  and  enthusiasms.  We  are  no 
longer  limited  by  his  cravings  or  interests.  We  must 
train  and  prepare  him  for  the  independence  which  he 
will  soon  declare.  If  we  follow  Nature  in  childhood,  she 
will  bid  the  youth  follow  us. 

We  have  found  that  development  takes  place  accord- 
ing to  an  orderly  sequence.  The  great  systems  do  not 
arise  in  the  embryo  in  the  same  order  as  in  racial 
development.  Notochord  and  brain,  very  young  raci- 
ally, arise  first  in  the  embryo.  But  when  a  system  has 
once  started,  it  repeats  in  general  outline,  imperfectly 
and  with  many  short  cuts  or  limitations,  the  racial  de- 
velopment of  the  same  organ.  Even  in  the  brain,  the 
old,  fundamental  portions  grow  and  mature  before  the 
younger  and  accessory.  In  the  different  systems  and 
organs  the  individual  recapitulates  briefly  and  imper- 
fectly the  development  of  the  race. 

We  have  seen  that  growth  is  anything  but  uniform 
in  different  parts  of  the  body  at  any  one  time.    Every 


60  GROWTH   AND   EDUCATION 

year  of  immature  life  is  characterized  by  the  rapid 
growth  of  some  organs.  Every  organ  has  its  time 
when  suitable  exercise  is  needed  to  promote  or  main- 
tain further  growth.  Without  this  exercise,  growth 
stagnates  or  halts,  and  development  is  incomplete  or 
defective.  Clouston  seems  to  be  entirely  correct  in  his 
view  that  an  incompletely  developed  organ  is  very 
likely  to  become  a  seat  of  disease  during  adult  life,  if 
not  before.  It  must  always  be  a  weak  spot  in  the  or- 
ganism. Hence  we  should  grudge  neither  time  nor 
effort  to  insure  the  full  growth  of  the  body,  especially 
of  the  vital  organs,  whose  growth  is  stimulated  mainly 
by  the  exercise  of  the  heavy  muscles.  We  often  forget 
or  despise  them,  yet  power,  efficiency,  and  even  life 
depend  upon  their  healthy  and  vigorous  action. 

Our  chief  problem  and  business  is  to  discover  what 
organ  craves  and  therefore  needs  exercise  during  each 
year  of  immature  life,  and  then  to  satisfy  these  natural 
and  healthy  cravings  by  exercise  suited  to  the  child's 
needs.  We  have  seen  that  refusal  to  satisfy  the  crav- 
ings of  the  restless  child  for  physical  exercise  and  bid- 
ding him  sit  still  too  long  over  his  book  rob  the  mus- 
cles of  needed  exercise  and  the  vital  organs  of  the 
necessary  stimuli,  with  little  or  no  profit  to  the  brain. 
It  also  results  in  a  deep-seated  aversion  to  books  and 
study. 

A  child's  interests  are  evidently  symptoms  of  a  crav- 
ing for  needed  exercise  by  some  centre  in  the  brain, 
just  as  much  as  restlessness  is  a  symptom  of  need  of 
movement.  It  follows  that  until  the  interest  is  mani- 
fest, that  part  of  the  brain  is  not  sufficiently  mature  to 
profit  by  the  exercise.  To  prescribe  such  exercise  at 
this  time  hampers  growth  instead  of  promoting  it.    A 


HINTS  FROM  EMBRYOLOGY  61 

study  which  demands  the  use  and  exercise  of  brain  cen- 
tres which  are  not  sufficiently  mature  to  manifest  an 
interest  or  to  profit  by  it  necessarily  becomes  an  object 
of  aversion. 

We  may  teach  the  child  to  read  before  any  interest  in 
books  or  reading  has  been  aroused.  He  learns  to  hate 
books.  "We  hurry  him  into  arithmetic  before  he  is  ma- 
ture enough  to  have  any  interest  in  it.  He  learns  to 
dislike  arithmetic.  If  we  will  commence  every  study 
one  year  before  the  child  is  mature  enough  to  become 
interested  in  it,  we  can  arouse  in  him  a  permanent  aver- 
sion to  every  study  in  the  course.  A  similar  child  be- 
ginning the  same  studies  a  year  or  two  older  may  find 
every  one  of  them  interesting  and  profitable.  Of  course 
much  depends  upon  the  method  of  presentation  of  the 
study  and  the  mode  of  approach  to  it.  We  have  made 
no  account  of  the  fact  that  the  more  mature  child,  with 
no  more  perseverance  or  application,  and  with  far  less 
expenditure  of  energy,  will  learn  and  accomplish  two  or 
three  times  as  much  in  one  half  of  the  time. 

The  forcing  process,  the  crowding  back  of  high  school 
studies  into  the  grammar  grades,  and  grammar  studies 
into  intermediate  or  primary  grades,  is  a  very  dangerous 
experiment.  It  is  liable  to  have  a  similar  result  to  that 
of  Dr.  Blimber's  training  of  young  Toots,  who,  "  when 
he  had  whiskers,  left  off  having  brains." 

Home  education  would  be  much  more  successful,  if 
parents  had  more  trust  in  God  and  Nature,  and  less  fear 
of  neighbors  and  friends.  The  child  must  always  wear 
nice  clothes  and  appear  well.  Young  children  must  be 
little  gentlemen  and  ladies  as  soon  as  they  can  toddle. 
This  is  exactly  what  Nature  would  not  have.  Childish 
instincts  and  habits  appear  to  us  rude  and  unconven- 


62  GROWTH  AND  EDUCATION 

tional,  and  they  probably  are  so.  We  suppress  them  at 
once.  It  is  not  necessary  or  best  that  the  child  should 
always  have  his  own  way.  But  he  should  always  have 
a  child's  and  not  an  adult's  ways.  It  is  not  best  to  un- 
necessarily thwart  and  hamper  him.  We  worry  about 
the  child,  and  then  worry  and  fret  him  into  irritability 
and  distrust  of  us  and  himself.  We  would  fain  oblit- 
erate or  prevent  all  "  tadpole  "  stages  in  development. 
A  healthy,  natural  growth  is  impossible  under  such  con- 
ditions. Thwarting  and  hampering  a  child  at  every 
turn  is  like  cutting  off  every  embryonic  growth  or  organ 
which  does  not  immediately  assume  the  perfect  form. 
Would  it  not  be  better  sometimes  to  give  the  child  the 
benefit  of  the  doubt,  to  leave  him  to  himself  now  and 
then,  and  see  what  he  would  do  under  such  strange  con- 
ditions ?  Is  it  not  wise  to  watch  and  consider  an  instinct 
before  we  hasten  to  suppress  it,  not  to  find  fault  with 
good  in  the  making,  or  unconventional  behavior,  entirely 
natural  at  a  certain  stage,  which  will  surely  change  or 
pass  away  with  greater  maturity  ?  Nature,  which  watched 
over  the  making  of  the  child,  may  be  trusted  to  lead 
him  by  her  own  devious  and  roundabout  paths  to  a  good 
and  sturdy  manhood.  She  has  had  far  more  experience 
than  we. 


CHAPTER  IV 

GROWTH   IN   WEIGHT 


The  object  of  education  is  fullness  of  life,  health,  vigor, 
joy,  and  efficiency.  This  demands  the  largest  growth 
and  fullest  development  of  all  parts  of  the  body,  and 
their  coordination  in  one  symmetrical,  well-balanced 
organism.  This  growth  and  development  must  include 
all  our  powers ;  physical,  mental,  moral,  and  religious. 
Of  all  these  physical  health  is  fundamental. 

Nature  tends  to  produce  normal  and  healthy  men  and 
women.  Ill  health  or  weakness  is  usually  the  result  of 
abnormal,  artificial  habits  and  conditions  of  life,  either 
of  ourselves  or  of  our  ancestors.  The  human  body  is 
an  exceedingly  complex  structure.  A  multitude  of 
organs  or  parts  must  have  time  and  opportunity  for 
growth.  Every  part  has  its  own  time  for  acceleration 
of  growth.  Care,  attention,  and  proper  exercise  will  at 
this  time  produce  far  greater  and  better  results  than 
before  or  afterward. 

During  infancy  and  childhood,  at  least,  we  must  let 
Nature  have  her  own  way,'  and  heed  her  suggestions. 
"  First  the  blade,  then  the  ear,  then  the  full  corn  in  the 
ear  "  is  the  law  of  a  safe  and  sure  development.  Intel- 
lectual growth  will  come  in  its  own  time,  and  in  fuller 
tide,  because  the  necessary  preparation  has  been  made. 
The  first  need  of  the  child  is  a  well-grown  body  with 
healthy  organs.  Our  first  study  therefore  must  be  that 
of  increase  in  weight,  height,  and  chest-girth.  For  these 
are  the  best  criteria  of  health  and  vigor. 


64  GROWTH  AND   EDUCATION 

The  average  weight  of  the  male  college  student  is  be- 
tween one  hundred  and  thirty-five  and  one  hundred  and 
forty  pounds. *  Englishmen  of  the  most  favored  class  have 
about  the  same  weight.2  We  wish  to  trace  the  rhythms 
of  growth  by  which  this  weight  is  attained.  Prenatal 
growth  is  marvelously  rapid.  Between  the  ages  of  three 
and  four  months  the  embryo  increases  in  weight  more 
than  fivefold.  During  the  first  six  months  after  birth 
the  baby  doubles  its  weight.  During  the  first  year  the 
gain  is  almost  one  hundred  and  seventy-five  per  cent. 
From  the  third  to  the  fifth  year  it  is  about  fifteen  per 
cent.  In  the  sixth  year  it  has  fallen  to  about  ten  per  cent. 
It  remains  near  this  mark  with  minor  fluctuations  for 
several  years.3 

In  the  eleventh  year,  more  rarely  in  the  tenth  or 
twelfth,  of  the  boy's  life,  growth  in  weight  has  declined 
to  a  minimum.  In  the  thirteenth  year,  more  rarely  in 
the  twelfth,  a  marked  acceleration  begins,  Und  lasts  about 
four  years.  In  Northern  Europe  the  period  of  accelera- 
tion begins  and  closes  about  a  year  later.  The  American 
boy  is  somewhat  precocious. 

Growth  in  weight  of  females.  The  average  weight 
of  the  students  at  our  Eastern^colleges  for  women  is 
about  one  hundred  and  twenty  pounds.4  The  average 
for  Western  colleges  seems  to  be  somewhat  less.  Eng- 
lish and  Swedish  women  of  the  same  age  seem  to  be 
from  two  to  four  pounds  heavier. 

Growth  in  weight  during  the  first  six  or  seven  years 
of  the  girl's  life  is  practically  the  same  as  in  the  boy, 

1  Hitchcock  and  Phillips,  Physical  Growth  of  Students  during  Course 
at  Amherst  College. 

2  Roberts,  Manual  of  Anthropometry,  p.  78. 
8  Holt,  Diseases  of  Infancy,  p.  20. 

4  Hitchcock,  Comparative  Anthropometry. 


GROWTH  IN  WEIGHT  AND  HEIGHT  65 

though  she  is  usually  a  little  lighter.  Growth  usually 
falls  to  a  minimum  at  ten.  Her  period  of  acceleration 
covers  the  twelfth  to  the  fourteenth  years.  The  decline 
in  the  fifteenth  year  is  sometimes  abrupt,  sometimes 
gradual.  In  most  cases  growth  is  slight  in  the  seven- 
teenth year,  and  has  practically  ceased  in  the  eighteenth. 
The  gain  after  the  eighteenth  year  seems  to  be  greater 
in  Europe  than  in  America.  The  girl  is  more  preco- 
cious than  the  boy  by  one  or  two  years.  Hence  from  the 
twelfth  to  the  fourteenth  year  she  usually  weighs  more 
than  he.    Her  period  of  accelerated  growth  is  shorter. 

Growth  in  height  The  average  height  of  the  male 
student  is  about  68  inches.1  Growth  in  height  is  very 
rapid  during  infancy  and  early  childhood,  and  falls  to 
a  minimum  at  eleven  or  twelve.  Acceleration  begins 
at  thirteen  or  fourteen,  and  lasts  about  four  years.  The 
average  height  of  the  college  woman  is  about  63.5 
inches.2  The  girl  has  a  fairly  steady  and  somewhat 
rapid  increase  in  height  up  to  about  the  fourteenth 
year.  Her  year  of  minimum  growth  is  at  ten  or  eleven, 
but  the  decline  is  not  very  great. 

The  normal  chest-girth  of  the  Eastern  college  student 
is  about  35  inches.3  But  this  varies  considerably  in  dif- 
ferent localities.  Increase  is  very  rapid  during  the  first 
year,4  declines  until  the  fifth,  rises  in  the  sixth,  is  irreg- 
ular until  the  acceleration  at  fourteen  or  fifteen.  We 
have  few  measurements  of  chest-girth  of  girls.  They 
seem  to  have  a  marked  increase  at  eleven  or  twelve. 

Growth  in  all  dimensions  is  evidently  very  rapid 
during  infancy  and  early  childhood.  There  is  frequently 

1  Hitchcock,  Comparative  Anthropometry.  2  Ibid. 

8  Hitchcock  and  Phillips,  Physical  Growth  of  Students. 
*  Holt,  Diseases  of  Infancy,  p.  20. 


66  GROWTH  AND  EDUCATION 

a  retardation  at  about  seven  or  eight,  and  a  minimum 
at  ten  or  eleven.  Then  comes  the  acceleration  accom- 
panying the  pubertal  changes.  Height  and  weight, 
except  during  a  part  of  the  pubertal  period,  are  rarely 
markedly  accelerated  at  the  same  time.  The  same  is  true 
of  annual  growth.  Fall  is  the  time  of  rapid  increase 
in  weight,  and  spring  and  early  summer  of  increase  in 
height.   Growth  during  winter  is  usually  slow.1 

But  health  and  vigor  do  not  depend  upon  great  bulk 
or  stature.  The  tallest  and  heaviest  are  often  lacking  in 
endurance.  It  is  of  far  greater  importance  that  the 
body  be  well  proportioned.  If  height,  weight,  and  chest- 
girth  increase  unequally,  the  proportions  of  the  body 
must  be  different  at  different  ages ;  and  this  difference 
will  almost  certainly  affect  the  vigor  of  the  child.  Lean 
and  full  years,  periods  of  strong  and  of  weak  resistance 
to  disease,  will  alternate. 

Up  to  the  age  of  about  fifteen  the  legs  are  growing 
much  more  rapidly  than  the  trunk.  During  the  first 
triennium  the  percentile  annual  increase  of  the  trunk 
is  two  thirds  of  that  of  the  legs ;  during  the  second  a 
little  more  than  one  half;  between  six  and  nine  less 
than  one  fourth ;  between  twelve  and  fifteen  less  than 
one  half.  After  fifteen  the  upper  half  of  the  body  gains 
twenty-five  per  cent,  the  lower  hardly  one  half  as  much. 

In  the  adult  male  the  sitting  height  is  about  fifty- 
three  per  cent  of  the  standing  height,  but  varies  con- 
siderably. At  birth  sitting  height  is  probably  two  thirds 
to  three  fourths  of  the  length  of  the  body ;  at  five  it  is 
about  fifty-six  per  cent ;  at  fourteen  or  fifteen  the  ratio 
has  fallen  to  about  fifty-one  per  cent;  at  sixteen  it 
begins  to  rise  again.    The  legs  seem  to  gain  relatively 

1  Malling-Hansen,  Perioden  in  Gewicht  der  Kinder. 


GROWTH   IN   WEIGHT  AND   HEIGHT  67 

rapidly  at  the  periods  of  retardation  of  growth  at  eight 
and  eleven,  while  at  fourteen  and  fifteen  the  relative 
gain  of  the  trunk  is  much  improved. 

The  proportions  of  the  girl  undergo  similar  varia- 
tions. Her  trunk  is  usually  somewhat  larger  relatively. 
The  gain  of  the  legs  begins  and  ceases  earlier. 

Chest  girth  is  at  birth  nearly  two  thirds  of  the  height.1 
At  nine  it  is  almost  exactly  one  half.  The  ratio  dimin- 
ishes until  the  thirteenth  or  fourteenth  year  in  the  boy. 
After  this  it  rises  continually,  and  at  twenty  should  ex- 
ceed one  half  the  height.  The  ratio  of  depth  to  breadth 
of  chest  is  very  large  at  birth.  During  the  first  year  / 
depth  very  nearly  equals  breadth.  In  the  girl  of  five 
the  ratio  has  fallen  to  about  seventy  per  cent;  at  four- 
teen it  is  sixty -three  per  cent ;  at  twenty  about  sixty- 
eight  per  cent,  or  the  same  ratio  as  at  the  age  of  nine. 
The  flatness  or  hollowness  of  the  chest  of  the  boy  and 
girl  at  ten  or  eleven  and  its  depth  in  the  baby  are  ap- 
parent to  every  one. 

The  boy  at  twelve  or  thirteen,  and  the  girl  a  year  or 
two  earlier,  are  farthest  from  the  proportions  of  the 
infant.  Adolescent  and  adult  tend  to  return  to  the  pro- 
portions of  childhood.  This  is  very  clear  in  the  relative 
length  of  trunk  and  legs,  in  girth  of  chest,  and  even 
more  in  its  form  and  roundness.  Even  the  old  vege- 
tative systems  seem  to  gain  a  new  revival  of  growth  at 
adolescence. 

Let  us  summarize  the  most  important  of  our  results. 

Infancy  and   early  childhood   are   periods  of  rapid 

increase  in  both  height  and  weight.    Growth  declines 

steadily  and  sinks  to  a  minimum  at  ten  or  eleven,  with 

usually  a  less  marked  retardation  at  about  eight.    In- 

1  Holt,  Diseases  of  Infancy. 


68  GROWTH  AND  EDUCATION 

crease  of  height  until  about  thirteen  or  fourteen  is  due 
more  to  the  lengthening  of  the  legs;  after  fourteen  or 
fifteen  the  trunk  gains  more  rapidly.  Increase  in  girth  is 
much  less  rapid  than  in  length  until  about  fourteen.  In 
the  study  of  the  child  in  the  grammar  grade  we  shall  find 
that  the  short  and  small  trunk  with  the  relatively  long 
legs  is  a  source  of  weakness  at  this  time.  The  vital 
organs  in  the  trunk  have  not  kept  pace  with  the  legs 
in  their  rate  of  growth.  Hence  we  find  in  our  study 
of  morbidity  that  there  is  a  steady  rise  in  the  amount  of 
sickness  throughout  the  period. 

It  has  been  a  subject  of  much  discussion  whether 
rapid  growth  is  a  symptom  of  increased  or  decreased 
endurance  and  resistance.  The  effect  of  growth  on  the 
physical  vigor  of  the  child  depends  upon  its  form  and 
direction.  Increased  girth  is  always  a  sign  of  increased 
power.  Increase  of  vigor  and  decrease  of  sickness  is 
marked  at  fourteen  and  sixteen  in  the  boy,  and  these 
years  are  marked  by  a  rapid  increase  in  girth.  In- 
creased length  of  trunk  means  more  spaceJEor  the  vital 
organs,  and  hence  increased  health  and  vigor.  Increased 
height  must  of  course  be  accompanied  by  increase  of 
weight.  But  if  this  increase  is  due  mainly  to  additions 
to  the  length  of  the  legs,  it  results  in  a  heavy  drain  on 
the  internal  organs  for  material  for  growth  and  fuel, 
and  for  removal  of  waste.  Hence  between  nine  and 
fourteen,  when  the  child  seems  to  be  largely  legs  with 
small  and  short  trunk,  especial  care  should  be  taken  to 
provide  abundant  nourishing  food  and  plenty  of  exercise 
in  the  open  air,  and  a  certain  amount  of  leniency  is 
necessary. 


CHAPTER   V 

GROWTH   OF   THE   NEURO-MUSCULAR   SYSTEM 

Plants  and  the  lowest  animals  remain  permanently  on 
what  we  have  called  the  zobphytic  plane  of  life.  The 
truly  animal  plane  is  characterized  by  the  development 
and  use  of  the  nervous  and  muscular  systems.  These 
have  been  termed  animal  in  distinction  from  the  vege- 
tative organs  of  digestion,  excretion,  etc.  They  have 
been  called  the  master  tissues  of  the  body.  They  are 
the  means  by  which  we  react  and  conform  to  environ- 
ment, grasping  its  opportunities  and  meeting  its  emer- 
gencies. 

The  relation  between  the  muscular  and  nervous  sys- 
tems is  exceedingly  close.  The  two  have  developed  to- 
gether and  hand  in  hand.  Every  change  or  current  in 
the  nervous  system  expresses  itself  through  some  change 
in  the  muscles ;  and  every  movement  of  our  muscles 
reacts  upon  our  nerve-centres.  The  two  really  form  one 
great  system,  and  it  is  only  for  the  sake  of  convenience 
that  we  consider  them  separately. 

In  the  average  adult  male  the  muscles  form  somewhat 
more  than  one  third  of  the  weight  of  the  body.1  In  the 
new-born  child  they  form  about  one  fourth  of  the  weight. 
Between  birth  and  maturity  they  increase  about  thirty- 
seven  fold.  Until  the  fourth  year  of  life  the  viscera  are 
outgrowing  the  muscles,  which  apparently  do  not  begin 
to  increase  very  fast  until  the  sixth  or  seventh  year. 

1  Vierordt,  Daten  und  Tabellen,  p.  29.   ^^ 


70  GROWTH   AND   EDUCATION 

From  this  time  until  the  age  of  sixteen  or  seventeen 
their  relative  increase  is  very  rapid.  During  the  first 
half  of  this  period  growth  in  length  is  more  prominent ; 
during  the  last  half,  growth  in  girth.  After  seventeen 
growth  in  weight  usually  slackens,  but  the  muscles  still 
increase  in  girth,  toughen  and  harden,  and  gain  greatly 
in  strength  and  endurance. 

At  birth  the  muscles  of  the  trunk  are  most  advanced, 
those  of  the  arms  are  in  advance  of  those  of  the  legs, 
but  the  latter  grow  more  rapidly  during  childhood.  As 
to  increase  of  muscular  girth  we  are  still  much  in  the 
dark.  The  following  results  seem  to  be  tolerably  trust- 
worthy. The  girth  of  the  upper  leg  increases  more 
rapidly  during  the  first  four  years  ;  after  this  the  calf 
gains  more  rapidly.  The  same  rule  applies  to  the  upper 
and  lower  arm.  But  the  heavy  muscles  of  upper  leg  and 
arm  seem  to  have  a  second  epoch  of  accelerated  growth 
about  the  sixteenth  year. 

The  movements  of  early  childhood  are  mostly  those 
of  the  whole  member ;  and  are  produced  mainly  by  the 
muscles  of  shoulder  and  thigh  as  well  as  of  upper  arm 
and  leg.  The  arm  grows  less  rapidly  than  the  leg  up  to 
about  the  eighth  or  ninth  year ;  afterwards  the  reverse  is 
true.  The  running  period  is  followed  by  one  of  greater 
use  of  the  arms.  The  accelerations  in  increase  of  girth 
of  arm  and  leg  occur  at  fourteen  and  sixteen  in  the 
boy.  But  at  ten  the  increase  is  more  rapid  than  we 
usually  suspect.  There  are  apparently  several  alterna- 
tions of  rapid  growth  and  comparative  rest. 

Strength  of  squeeze,  or  of  grip  of  hand,  increases 
markedly  at  six  or  seven,  the  gain  decreases  toward 
ten  or  eleven.  The  acceleration  which  we  should  expect 
at  fourteen  comes  at  different  ages  in  different  local- 


GROWTH  OF  THE  NEURO-MUSCULAR  SYSTEM    71 

ities,  probably  according  to  the  habits  and  conditions 
of  life. 

A  muscular  fibre  of  the  same  area  of  cross-section 
seems  to  have  almost  forty  per  cent  more  strength  at 
ten  than  at  eight,  and  to  gain  nearly  the  same  amount 
between  eleven  and  sixteen.  Bryan's  and  Gilbert's  * 
experiments  on  voluntary  motor  ability  tested  by  rapid- 
ity of  tapping  on  a  telegraph  key,  showed  a  great 
gain  at  eight,  usually  preceded  in  Bryan's  experiments 
by  a  similar  though  smaller  gain  at  six.  Gilbert  tested 
fatigue  also.  The  effect  of  fatigue  usually  decreases 
steadily  from  year  to  year,  as  the  child's  strength  and 
endurance  increase.  But  at  eight  the  child  fatigues 
more  quickly  than  at  seven.  This  rapid  increase  of 
efficiency,  accompanied  by  quickness  of  fatigue,  seems 
to  point  clearly  to  additions  of  new  materials  or  other 
changes  in  the  motor  nerve-centres  at  this  age. 

The  development  of  the  muscular  system  of  the  girl 
is  similar  to  that  of  the  boy,  but  more  precocious.  In 
strength  of  squeeze  her  gain  at  seven  and  eight  is  very 
large.  At  or  about  ten  there  is  a  retardation.  Accel- 
eration begins  at  twelve  or  eleven,  and  continues  about 
three  years.  Fatigue  and  efficiency  both  increase  at 
eight,  as  in  boys. 

Growth  of  the  Brain.  According  to  Yierordt  the 
brain  forms  12.29  per  cent  of  the  weight  of  the  body 
at  birth;  in  the  adult,  2.15  per  cent.  It  is  outgrown 
by  other  organs.  Its  absolute  weight  at  birth  is  a  little 
more  than  one  fourth  of  its  adult  weight.  It  doubles 
its  weight  during  the  first  eight  or  nine  months,  and 
trebles  it  by  the  end  of  the  third  year.    At  the  end  of 

1  Bryan,  "  Development  of  Motor  Activity,"  American  Journal  of 
Psychology,  v,  125. 


72  GROWTH  AND   EDUCATION 

the  seventh  year  its  weight  is  not  very  much  less  than 
at  maturity.  From  this  time  on  great  increase  in  effi- 
ciency will  be  attained  with  but  slight  increase  of  weight. 
At  birth  the  cerebellum  has  attained  a  considerably 
smaller  part  of  its  adult  weight  than  the  cerebrum,  and 
during  the  last  nine  months  of  the  first  year  its  percent- 
ile gain  is  more  than  two  and  one  half  times  as  great. 
Between  fourteen  and  twenty  also  its  growth  is  rapid.1 

Maturity,  or  more  probably  great  increase  of  effi- 
ciency, is  marked  by  the  appearance  of  the  medullary 
sheath  surrounding  the  nerve-fibres  in  the  centres.  The 
first  fibres  in  the  cerebro-spinal  system  to  become  me- 
dullated  are  those  connecting  neighboring  centres  in 
the  spinal  cord.2  These  control  the  simplest  reflex 
actions.  Then  follows  the  medullation  of  fibres  con- 
necting higher  and  lower  centres  in  the  cord.  These 
are  concerned  in  more  complex  reflexes.  The  medul- 
lation extends  upward  into  the  cerebellum,  assuring 
simple  coordinations.  These  changes  are  practically 
completed  before  birth. 

At  birth  there  is  little  medullation  in  the  cerebrum. 
Here  the  sensory  centres  mature  earliest;  first,  those 
of  smell,  then  of  sight,  last  of  all,  those  of  hearing. 
The  centres  in  the  cortex  which  preside  over  voluntary 
motion  seem  to  mature  later.  The  child  is  at  first  sen- 
sory and  receptive ;  later  an  active,  motor,  purposing, 
and  voluntary  being. 

Professor  Donaldson  has  compared  the  mature  por- 
tions of  the  child's  brain  to  islands  physiologically  sepa- 
rated from  one  another.  But  the  straits  separating  these 
physiological   islands   must   be   bridged  or    underlaid 

1  Vierordt,  Daten  und  Tabellen,  pp.  19-24. 

2  Burk,  "  From  Fundamental  to  Accessory,"  Ted.  Sem.  -vi,  10. 


GROWTH  OF  THE  NEURO-MUSCULAR  SYSTEM    73 

with  cables  before  any  real  thinking  can  be  done.  The 
highest  part  of  this  work  is  probably  performed  by 
the  association  fibres  of  the  cortex,  whose  centres  seem 
to  be  seats  of  thought.  These  fibres  are  the  last  to  be- 
come medullated.  Many  of  them  do  not  mature  until 
adult  life,  some  even  after  thirty.  Hence  the  logical 
and  other  intellectual  powers  of  the  child  are  weak.  It 
is  during  adolescence  that  the  youth  begins  to  appre- 
ciate and  delight  in  argument.  ^ 

Everywhere  in  the  nervous  system  we  find  steadily 
increasing  complexity.  First  come  the  simplest  reflexes, 
then  the  more  complex.  The  sensory  centres  mature 
separately,  then  the  motor ;  then  these  become  con- 
nected with  one  another.  Thus  the  best  and  most  effi- 
cient brain  is  not  necessarily  the  largest  and  heaviest, 
but  the  one  in  which  the  largest  possible  number  of 
the  very  best  connections  has  been  made  in  infancy  and 
childhood. 

During  its  period  of  growth  and  of  early  development 
every  organ  is  plastic  and  easily  modified.  Then  these 
modifications  set  and  become  permanent.  The  brain 
forms  no  exception  to  this  rule.  There  is  a  time  when 
it  is  easy  to  learn  to  dance  or  to  acquire  manual  dex- 
terity. If  we  delay  too  long  we  acquire  these  accom- 
plishments with  difficulty,  if  at  all.  "  It  is  hard  to  teach 
an  old  dog  new  tricks." 

In  exercising  the  nervous  system  to  promote  growth, 
or  to  train  it  to  certain  accomplishments,  the  exercise 
and  training  must  be  suited  in  kind  and  amount  to  the 
character  of  the  centre  and  to  its  stage  of  development. 
Complex  actions  and  processes  cannot  be  expected  from 
simple  systems  still  lacking  in  coordination.  The  sen- 
sory centres  must  be  trained  early  if  at  all.    To  neglect 


74  GROWTH   AND   EDUCATION 

the  developing  motor  centres  in  an  attempt  to  exercise 
or  train  the  still  nascent  association  centres  of  intellect- 
ual power  and  work  is  poor  economy  ;  and  must  result 
in  waste  if  not  in  injury. 

Nowhere  do  we  find  a  clearer  illustration  of  growth  by 
parts  in  a  regular  and  orderly  succession  than  in  our 
study  of  the  nervous  system.  Nowhere  do  we  see  more 
clearly  that  the  development  of  the  higher  centre  or 
power  depends  upon  suitable  growth  and  development 
of  the  lower.  The  association  fibres,  with  whose  growth 
and  development  our  higher  intellectual  powers  seem  to 
be  coordinated,  connect  sensory  and  motor  areas.  Hence 
their  development  must  depend  upon  the  growth  and 
development  of  the  sensory  and  motor  cells  which  they 
connect,  and  by  whose  exercise  their  growth  is  appar- 
ently stimulated. 

We  have  already  seen  that  the  order  of  development 
of  centres  in  the  brain  is,  in  general,  first  the  sensory 
and  then  the  motor.  But  if  we  accept  this  too  literally 
and  strictly,  we  shall  fall  into  error.  Infancy  and  early 
childhood  are  predominantly  sensory,  yet  the  baby 
learns  to  walk,  and  the  young  child  runs.  And  sensory 
development  persists  into  youth  unless  hampered  or 
crowded  out  by  an  unwise  system  of  education.  It 
would  be  more  correct  to  say  that  sensory  and  motor 
development  react  mutually.  First  come  the  simplest 
sensations  and  simplest  movements,  perhaps  mere  re- 
flexes. The  increased  power  of  motion  gives  wider 
scope  and  better  opportunity  for  new  sensations,  and 
these  stimulate  new  motor  activity.  Every  experience 
whets  the  appetite  for  new  experiments,  and  these  in- 
crease our  stores  of  experience  and  knowledge. 

This  interdependence  of  powers  and  centres  in  the 


GROWTH  OF  THE  NEURO-MUSCULAR  SYSTEM    75 

brain  is  probably  not  limited  to  its  sensory  and  motor 
aspects.  The  highest  centres  react  strongly  upon  our 
motor  powers.  We  all  notice  the  marked  increase  in 
the  strength  and  efficiency  of  our  muscles  when  we  are 
stimulated  by  the  hope  of  approval.  The  charging  regi- 
ment hurls  itself  into  the  enemy's  intrenchment  with 
and  by  a  cheer.  Similarly  the  motor  powers  react  upon 
the  highest  intellectual  powers  of  the  cortex. 

This  leads  us  to  expect  that  the  cortex  will  have  not 
one  period  of  accelerated  growth,  but  several  or  many. 
Some  fibres  certainly  become  medullated  far  earlier  than 
others.  As  to  the  growth  and  maturing  of  the  associa- 
tion centres,  we  are  still  much  or  altogether  in  the  dark. 
We  may  hope  to  gain  some  light  upon  this  point  by 
a  study  of  the  succession  of  interests  of  the  child.1 

We  have  seen  that  in  every  system  a  period  of  pure 
growth  with  little  or  no  actual  efficiency  is  followed  by 
one  when  growth  depends  upon  the  stimulus  of  active 
exercise.  So,  when  the  muscles  and  nerve  centres  of  the 
leg  have  reached  a  certain  stage  of  development, 
the  child  begins  to  walk  and  then  to  run.  This  craving 
for  exercise  is  a  wise  and  beneficent  instinct.  Without 
it  growth  stagnates,  and  development  is  defective. 

Similarly,  the  centres  of  the  brain  grow,  and  after 
a  time  crave  exercise  successively.  We  usually  apply 
the  word  interests  to  the  cravings  of  the  higher  centres, 
but  these  interests  are  as  truly  symptoms  of  the  attain- 
ment of  a  certain  stage  of  development  and  of  real 
needs  as  the  craving  of  the  legs  for  exercise  or  the 
hunger  of  the  body  for  food.  The  interests  of  the  child 
may  therefore  furnish  us  a  very  valuable  glimpse  of 
the  order  of  growth  and  development  of  the  nervous 

1  King-,  Psychology  of  Child  Development,  chaps,  xi-xiv. 


76  GROWTH   AND   EDUCATION 

centres  and  their  powers.  At  the  same  time  we  must 
bear  in  mind  that  interests,  like  habits  and  instincts, 
are  always  modified  more  or  less  by  surrounding  con- 
ditions. We  can  expect  that  our  deductions  will  be 
valid  only  in  general,  and  that  they  can  show  us  only 
what  we  may  usually  expect.  Here  again  we  must  be 
prepared  for  great  individual  and  local  variation. 

The  first  desire  or  interest  of  the  child  is  to  become 
acquainted  with  the  objects  which  surround  him.  This 
characterizes  the  sensory  period  of  life,  lasting  from 
early  infancy  to  the  sixth,  or  perhaps  the  eighth  year. 
The  young  child  wishes  to  handle  everything.  His  eyes 
and  ears  are  wide  open.  His  usual  question  is :  What 
is  it  ?  There  is  much  in  a  name  to  him.  But  he  is  not 
merely  enumerating  and  cataloguing  objects  and  qual- 
ities. He  is  reacting  to  them,  using  them  to  satisfy  his 
desires,  to  give  him  pleasure,  and  thus  to  awaken  new 
desires.  He  discovers  early  what  can  be  used  most 
easily  and  effectively  to  make  a  loud  noise  or  furnish 
some  other  gratification.  We  like  to  give  things  to  a 
baby  to  see  what  he  will  do  with  them.  He  is  really 
experimenting  with  himself  and  the  world,  which  is 
wonderfully  fresh  and  fascinating  to  him.  He  stores 
his  mind  with  vivid  and  permanent  impressions. 

The  original  sensations  and  impressions  are  always 
strong ;  hence  copies  of  these  will  frequently  be  repro- 
duced by  the  mind,  sometimes  in  strange  combinations. 
In  other  words  the  child  is  very  imaginative.  It  is  said 
that  a  child  under  six  years  old  believes  everything  which 
is  told  him.  The  impression  is  the  great  thing.  Whether 
its  occasion  is  real  and  objective  or  subjective  and  im- 
aginary, he  neither  knows  nor  cares.  All  things  are  still 
possible  to  him. 


GROWTH  OF  THE  NEURO-MUSCULAR  SYSTEM    77 

The  mind  of  the  young  child  is  apparently  a  picture- 
gallery  of  experiences,  observations,  and  products  of  the 
imagination.  The  repetition,  renewal,  or  recollection  of 
these  affords  him  keen  enjoyment.  The  old  story  must 
always  be  repeated  in  exactly  the  same  words  to  suit 
these  mental  images. 

His  nervous  system  is  simple  and  normal.  Sensory 
impulses  find  their  way  very  directly  to  the  muscles. 
The  inhibitory  influence  of  the  cortical  centres  is  still 
very  slight  or  absent.  But  only  the  connections  on  the 
"  lower  levels  "  *  are  as  yet  thoroughly  established.  He 
must  rely  mainly  on  his  heavy  fundamental  muscles. 
Early  childhood  is  by  no  means  a  purely  sensory  epoch, 
but  the  motor  powers  lag  behind  the  sensory.  He  can- 
not actually  realize  more  than  a  small  part  of  his  mental 
images.  Here  again  he  uses  his  imagination  to  piece 
out  his  accomplishments.  His  toys  are  frequently  hardly 
more  than  symbols.  The  chair  becomes  a  horse,  a  car, 
or  a  boat ;  placed  across  a  corner  of  the  room  it  forms 
a  house,  a  cave,  or  a  wide  field.  Thus  he  plays  himself 
into  a  knowledge  of  the  world  and  of  life. 

The  second  period,  lasting,  according  to  Clouston,2 
from  seven  to  thirteen,  is  one  of  coordination  of  motion 
and  emotion.  The  sense-organs  are  still  improving  and 
craving  exercise.  But  this  is  chiefly  a  motor  epoch, 
when  the  child's  greatest  interest  is  in  plays  calling 
forth  the  use  of  the  muscles  of  the  legs  and  arms.  The 
great  importance  of  these  plays  can  better  be  considered 
in  a  later  chapter. 

Our  most  important  and  difficult  question  is  :  When 
do  the  so-called  higher  mental  powers  begin  to  be  suf- 

1  Burk,  "  Fundamental  to  Accessory,"  Ted.  Sem.  vi,  15. 

2  Clouston,  Neuroses  of  Development,  p.  12. 


78  GROWTH  AND  EDUCATION 

ficiently  mature  to  crave  exercise  and  thus  make  it 
profitable  ?  The  powers  of  logical  inference  certainly 
do  not  become  prominent  much  before  adolescence,  and 
abstract  reasoning  is  weak  almost  or  quite  until'  adult 
life.  We  notice  the  impulsiveness  of  the  child.  The 
sight  of  a  running  object  tempts  him  to  chase  it  almost 
as  irresistibly  as  it  would  a  kitten.  We  know  that  he 
will  chase  it.  This  immediateness  and  certainty  of  re- 
sponse characterizes  control  by  lower  centres.  Other 
controlling  influences  are  imitation  and  direct  sugges- 
tion. Indirect  suggestion  is  more  potent  with  adults. 
These  influences  are  very  strong  before  puberty,  and 
they  are  not  characteristic  of  any  marked  rise  in  power 
of  reasoning. 

We  should  expect  that  one  of  the  first  signs  of  spon- 
taneous intelligent  comparison  and  thought  about  ob- 
jects would  appear  in  the  arrangement  of  his  collections. 
Mrs.  C.  F.  Burk1  finds  little  spontaneous  classification 
by  children.  Quantity  is  of  vastly  greater  importance. 
They  merely  keep  and  increase  their  collections  until 
the  age  of  nine,  "when  there  is  a  small  proportion  of 
miscellaneous  arrangements  and  of  classifications  accord- 
ing to  color  and  size,  with  some  few  instances  of  a 
classification  according  to  kind.  But  these  classifica- 
tions and  arrangements  appear  mainly  after  eleven 
years  of  age."  Taylor 2  found  that  few  children  of 
seven  or  eight  years  give  any  reasons  for  their  hopes 
and  ambitions,  and  that  at  nine  the  only  reason  given 
by  many  was:  "I  like  it."    Monroe3  finds  that  few 

1  Burk,  "  Collecting  Instinct,"  Ped.  Sem.  vii,  204. 

2  Taylor,  "  Children's  Hopes,"  Report  of  N.  Y.  State  Superintendent 
of  Public  Instruction,  1896,  ii,  987. 

3  Monroe,  "  Play  Interests  of  Children,"  Trans,  of  III.  Soc.  for  Child- 
Study,  iv,  5. 


GROWTH  OF  THE  NEURO-MUSCULAR  SYSTEM    79 

children  of  seven  or  eight  give  any  reasons  for  their 
selection  of  favorite  games,  while  after  thirteen  most 
of  them  give  reasons  for  their  choice.  Says  Monroe : 
"  This  would  hint  that  thirteen  years  is  the  age  when 
children  begin  to  critically  examine  their  evidence,  and 
when  the  reasoning  power  of  the  mind  appears  as  a 
dominant  factor  in  the  mental  life  of  the  child."  Barnes 
and  Shaw  find  the  power  to  classify  weak  before  twelve 
years.  Hancock,1  in  a  very  interesting  article  on  chil- 
dren's errors  in  arithmetic,  concludes  that  their  power 
to  compare  numbers  does  not  develop  to  any  great  ex- 
tent until  twelve  or  thirteen.  Mrs.  Barnes,2  in  a  study 
of  the  Historic  Sense  of  children,  found  that  at  ten  or 
twelve  the  number  of  inferences  increased,  and  that  the 
power  of  "  legitimate  inference  "  rose  sharply  at  twelve. 
Burk  also  concludes  that  the  higher  mental  powers  be- 
gin to  mature  at  puberty. 

These  views  are  supported  by  a  large  amount  of  evi- 
dence of  great  variety.  If  we  accept  them,  it  is  evident 
that  we  often  expect  mental  powers  in  the  child  other 
and  higher  than  he  really  possesses.  The  child  learns 
language  mostly  by  imitation  of  parents  and  teachers, 
very  little,  if  at  all,  by  any  understanding  of  rules  of 
grammar.  He  imitates  and  acquires  methods.  He 
thinks,  but  he  thinks  as  a  child;  largely  in  terms  of 
movement  and  concrete  action,  not  of  rules  or  laws. 

Hence  courses  of  study,  methods,  and  textbooks 
based  upon  systems  of  adult  psychology  are  very  likely 
to  prove  disappointing,  when  applied  to  the  child.  In- 
deed, the  more  closely  they  approach  adult  standards 
and  ideals,  the  farther  they  are  from  the  child's  under- 

1  Hancock,  "  Mental  Differences,"  N.  E.  A,  1897,  p.  852. 

2  Barnes,  Studies  in  Education. 


80  GROWTH  AND  EDUCATION 

standing  and  needs.  The  application  of  the  results  of 
child-study  is  so  new  that  it  must  be  more  or  less  of  an 
experiment.  But  it  is  an  experiment  of  much  hope  and 
promise.  The  application  of  the  results  of  purely  adult 
psychology  to  the  case  of  the  child  is  almost  surely 
doomed  to  failure.  Such  an  experiment  can  have  but 
one,  and  that  an  unsatisfactory,  result. 


CHAPTER  VI 

GROWTH   OF   THE   VISCERAL   ORGANS  * 

The  Digestive  System.  According  to  Miihlmann  the 
weight  of  the  whole  intestine  in  the  male  forms  at  birth 
6.7  per  cent  of  the  total  weight ;  from  four  to  six,  about 
5  per  cent ;  from  fourteen  to  twenty -four,  about  3.3  per 
cent.  Relatively  to  the  length  of  the  body  it  is  longest 
in  infancy  and  early  childhood.  Beneke  2  tells  us  that  it 
has  from  one  hundred  to  one  hundred  and  eighty  cubic 
centimeters  capacity  for  each  kilogram  of  weight  in  th 
child,  while  in  the  adult  the  ratio  is  only  about  one  h 
as  favorable.  During  childhood  it  has  to  furnish  n#te- 
rial  for  growth  as  well  as  fuel  for  the  fundamental 
muscles. 

The  Liver.  In  this  organ  most  important  changes  of 
material,  both  constructive  and  destructive,  are  continu- 
ally taking  place.  It  is  a  sort  of  clearing-house  for  the 
business  of  the  body.  Hence  its  relative  size  is  an  im- 
portant symptom  of  the  amount  of  metabolism  taking 
place  at  each  period.  It  is  relatively  very  large  in  in- 
fancy, and  probably  continues  so  during  the  first  four 
years  of  life.  It  loses  in  relative  weight  at  five,  eight, 
and  sixteen.  This  diminished  relative  weight  may  be 
due  either  to  slow  growth  of  the  liver,  or  to  the  rapid 
growth  of  other  organs.  The  loss  at  sixteen  is  almost 
certainly  due  largely  to  the  latter  cause,  the  loss  at  eight 

1  Hall,    Adolescence ;    Virordt,   Daten    und    Tabellen ;    Miihlmann, 
Unsache  des  Alters. 

2  Vierordt,  Daten  und  Tabellen,  p.  81. 


82  GROWTH  AND  EDUCATION 

more  probably  to  the  former.  But  our  figures  after 
infancy  are  few,  and  their  value  is  doubtful. 

The  relative  weight  in  the  girl  follows  a  somewhat 
different  course.  It  is  larger  at  birth  than  in  the  boy, 
does  not  diminish  so  rapidly  during  childhood,  and  re- 
mains higher  in  the  adult.  The  differences  between  the 
sexes  are  too  marked  to  be  explained  readily  by  the  few- 
ness of  our  observations.  They  are  probably  associated 
with  the  greater  constructive,  anabolic  power  and  tend- 
ency of  the  female,  as  set  forth  by  Geddes  and  Thomp- 
son.1 The  kidneys,  which  remove  the  nitrogenous  waste 
of  the  body  follow  a  very  similar  line  of  growth  to  that  of 
the  liver. 

The  Circulatory  System.  The  heart  at  birth  is  rela- 
tively heavy.  It  doubles  its  weight  during  the  first  two 
years,  doubles  this  at  eight,  and  doubles  this  once  more 
during  the  next  six  years.  The  relative  weight  of  the 
heart,  as  compared  with  the  weight  of  the  body,  is  great 
at  birth,  sinks  during  the  first  year,  rises  at  four,  is  low 
at  eight,  and  rises  again  at  about  fourteen. 

The  volume  of  the  heart  doubles  during  the  first  two 
years.  It  somewhat  more  than  doubles  during  the  next 
five  years.  During  the  next  seven  years,  between  the 
ages  of  seven  and  fourteen,  its  increase  is  still  slower, 
adding  about  two  thirds  of  its  volume  at  seven.  During 
puberty  the  heart  enlarges  as  much  as  during  the  pre- 
ceding seven  years.  If  puberty  is  attained  quickly,  as 
is  frequently  the  case  with  the  girl,  the  whole  amount 
may  be  added  during  three  or  even  two  years.  Hence 
during  adolescence  the  heart  is  large  but  weak  in  both 
sexes. 

The  arteries  are  relatively  large  in  childhood,  small- 

1  Evolution  of  Sex,  London,  1894. 


GROWTH  OF  THE  VISCERAL  ORGANS  83 

est  at  puberty,  after  forty  enlarge  slowly,  and  in  old 
age  have  nearly  the  same  relative  size  calibre  as  in 
childhood.  As  the  capacity  of  the  heart  increases  at 
puberty  much  more  rapidly  than  the  calibre  of  the  ar- 
teries, the  blood-pressure  rises  rapidly  at  this  epoch, 
while  it  is  low  in  childhood  and  old  age.  The  greatest 
activity  of  the  organism  coincides  in  time  with  the  high- 
est blood -pressure. 

Both  heart  and  arteries  differ  markedly  in  size  in 
individuals  of  practically  the  same  size  and  weight. 
Beneke  found  that  children  at  birth  may  have  hearts 
of  hardly  more  than  one  half  of  the  normal  capacity. 
This  condition  may  well  be  responsible  for  death  from 
general  weakness  or  from  diseases  of  the  respiratory 
system.  Such  children  may  survive  with  delicate  consti- 
tutions. Or  the  weak  and  small  heart  may  be  strength- 
ened and  enlarged  by  proper  exercise. 

Beneke  found  also  that  death  from  typhoid  fever  was 
more  frequent  when  the  arteries  were  small  and  thus 
threw  an  excessive  strain  on  the  heart.  Evidently  dif- 
ference in  the  size  of  the  heart  and  arteries  must  affect 
greatly  the  whole  life  of  different  individuals,  and  of 
the  same  individual  at  different  ages. 

Growth  of  the  lungs.  The  pulmonary  or  vital  ca- 
pacity of  the  average  male  college  student  seems  to  be 
between  two  hundred  and  thirty  and  two  hundred  and 
fifty  cubic  inches  or  about  four  liters.1  Growth  is  very 
variable  during  childhood  and  youth  according  to  con- 
ditions and  habits  of  life.  Increase  is  usually  rapid  in 
the  boy  between  the  ages  of  six  and  ten,  but  slackens 
during  the  next  three  years.  There  is  nearly  always 
a  marked  acceleration  of  growth  at  fourteen  and  again 
1  Hitchcock  and  Phillips,  Physical  Growth  of  Students. 


84  GROWTH  AND  EDUCATION 

at  sixteen.  In  the  college  woman  the  lung  capacity  is 
about  two  thirds  of  that  of  the  college  man.1  There  is 
usually  little  increase  after  sixteen.  There  is  little  dif- 
ference between  the  sexes  until  the  ninth  or  tenth  year. 
In  the  boy  the  capacity  doubles  between  ten  and  six- 
teen, in  the  girl  the  increase  is  far  less,  and  usually 
irregular.  The  college  woman  has  only  about  three 
fourths  as  much  vital  capacity  for  each  pound  of  weight 
as  the  man.  This  may,  or  may  not,  be  due  to  her  con- 
structive, anabolic  physiological  tendencies.  Between 
five  and  ten  the  girl  has  nine  tenths  of  the  relative  vital 
capacity  of  the  boy.  Between  eleven  and  fourteen  she 
usually  falls  behind  rapidly.  This  is  the  period  when 
she  most  needs  a  large  supply  of  oxygen  in  the  blood. 

During  puberty,  and  probably  before  also,  bright 
pupils  have  a  constant  and  often  marked  superiority  in 
this  respect.2  The  importance  of  well-oxygenated  blood 
for  vigor  and  efficiency  of  the  brain,  as  well  as  for  gen- 
eral health,  cannot  be  overestimated.  Physical  training 
has  its  good  effects  on  the  vital  capacity  of  the  boy  as 
well  as  of  the  girl.  The  results  are  less  marked  in  his 
case,  because  the  boy  usually  manages  to  get  a  certain 
amount  of  outdoor  play  or  other  daily  exercise  which  is 
frequently  denied  to  the  girl.  It  is  doubtful  whether 
even  the  boy  has  as  large  a  vital  capacity  as  he  needs 
during  puberty.  Here  the  averages  are  probably  some- 
what or  considerably  below  a  true  normal  standard. 

Metabolism  in  child  and  adult.  We  have  seen  that 
the  human  body  may  be  compared  to  a  steam  engine. 
Coal  is  burned  in  the  fire-box  of  the  locomotive,  oxygen 

1  Hitchcock,  Comparative  Anthropometry. 

2  Gilbert,  "  Mental  and  Physical  Development  of  School  Children," 
Studies  from  Yale  Psy.  Laboratory,  ii,  40. 


GROWTH  OF  THE  VISCERAL  ORGANS  85 

is  admitted  or  driven  through  the  draft,  and  the  waste 
products  of  combustion  escape  through  the  flues.  Tho 
result  of  the  combustion  is  heat,  a  part  of  which  is 
utilized  to  furnish  power.  Similarly  the  income  of 
our  bodies  is  represented  by  our  food  and  the  oxygen 
absorbed  in  the  lungs. 

In  the  adult  a  large  part  of  the  food  is  consumed  in 
the  muscles,  some  in  the  repair  of  the  tissues,  and  the 
balance  is  devoted  to  reproduction.  More  or  less  may 
be  stored  temporarily  as  fat.  During  childhood  and 
early  youth  the  balance  is  devoted  to  growth,  the  forma- 
tion of  new  cells  or  the  enlargement  or  maturing  of 
those  already  formed. 

Our  question  is :  How  does  the  income  of  the  child 
compare  with  that  of  the  adult,  and  how  is  it  used  or 
expended  ? 

Professor  Atwater *  has  told  us  that  the  boy  of  fifteen 
or  sixteen  requires  ninety  per  cent  of  the  food  ration  of 
the  adult  man  engaged  in  moderate  muscular  work ;  the 
girl  of  the  same  age  requires  about  eighty  per  cent. 
Boys  at  twelve  and  girls  at  thirteen  or  fourteen  require 
seventy  per  cent.  The  child  from  six  to  nine  requires 
about  fifty  per  cent.  The  young  child  between  two 
and  five  averages  about  forty  per  cent.  We  may  well 
remember  that  the  girl  at  thirteen  or  fourteen  weighs 
more  than  the  boy  of  the  same  age  and  is  changing 
faster.  Probably  she  ought  to  digest  as  much  as  the 
boy  of  fifteen.  In  fact,  she  usually  eats  less  than  the 
boy  of  twelve.  Here  the  observation  probably  shows  us 
what  is,  rather  than  what  ought  to  be. 

We  have  already  noticed  the  relatively  large  size  of 
the  intestine  during  infancy  and  early  childhood.    The 

1  Atwater,  Annual  Report,  xy,  131. 


86  GROWTH  AND   EDUCATION 

demands  for  food  during  these  early  years  are  far 
greater  than  most  of  us  suspect.  The  young  child  re- 
quires about  twice  as  much  food  for  each  pound  of 
weight  as  the  adult.  The  infant  needs  even  more.  The 
infant  and  young  child  expend  most  of  their  income  in 
growth,  which  is  now  very  rapid.  Comparatively  little 
material  is  used  as  fuel  by  the  muscles,  probably  even 
less  by  the  nervous  system. 

As  the  baby  and  young  child  burn  up  less  material 
for  fuel,  we  should  expect  that  they  would  require  little 
oxygen  and  produce  little  waste.  This  is  not  the  case. 
The  infant  seems  to  require  fully  one  fourth  as  much 
oxygen  as  an  adult  weighing  twenty  times  as  much. 
Thus  for  each  pound  of  weight  it  seems  to  require  four 
or  five  times  as  much  oxygen  as  the  adult.  Relatively 
to  its  weight  it  produces  two  or  three  times  as  much 
waste  also,  carbonic  acid  and  urea.  The  boy  of  five  or 
six  produces  twice  as  much  heat  for  each  pound  of 
weight  as  the  adult,  the  infant  even  more.  Thus  the 
amount  of  heat  produced  by  each  pound  of  tissue  dur- 
ing the  years  of  most  active  muscular  exercise  between 
fifteen  and  twenty  is  only  about  half  as  great  as  at  five 
or  six,  or  earlier,  which  are  years  characterized  by  sen- 
sory more  than  by  muscular  activity. 

There  seems  to  be  but  one  natural  explanation  of  the 
large  amount  of  food  and  oxygen  required,  and  of  waste 
produced  during  infancy  and  childhood.  Growth  is  a 
very  expensive  process,  and  demands  the  combustion  of 
a  large  amount  of  nutriment,  more  than  is  consumed  by 
active  muscular  exercise.  Even  opening  flowers  produce 
an  appreciable  amount  of  heat.  Hence  wise  and  gen- 
erous provision  should  be  made  for  a  liberal  supply  of 
food  and  oxygen  during  periods  of   rapid  growth  or 


GROWTH  OF  THE  VISCERAL  ORGANS  87 

change.  Kind  and  quality  also  demand  attention.  It 
must  be  suited  to  the  needs  of  the  epoch.  The  infant's 
food  must  be  fluid  and  easily  digestible.  The  child 
craves  and  needs  much  easily  digestible  fat,  and  usually 
wishes  its  bread  buttered  on  both  sides  and  on  the  edges, 
craves  sugar  and  fruits,  and  is  always  thirsty.  All  these 
cravings,  if  not  too  immoderate,  are  entirely  healthy. 
Over-indulgence  is  generally  due  to  previous  denial  of 
a  healthy  craving. 

Finally  we  should  bear  in  mind  that  the  digestive 
system,  rather  than  the  brain,  is  the  foundation  of  all 
greatness.  On  it  hang  all  the  possibilities  of  health, 
vigor,  and  power,  as  well  as  of  existence.  A  poorly 
nourished  body  can  hardly  contain  or  minister  to  a 
healthy  brain.  In  early  childhood  the  table  and  meal 
are  far  more  important  than  school  or  books.  Most  of 
our  diseases  are  due  in  last  analysis  to  malnutrition  or 
to  lack  of  assimilative  power.  No  energy  without  com- 
bustion, and  no  combustion  without  fuel,  are  as  true  of 
the  human  body  as  of  the  locomotive  dragging  the  ex- 
press train  up  the  steep,  long  grade. 

But  the  use  of  the  material  differs  at  different  ages 
no  less  than  the  amount.  In  infancy,  when  the  supply 
of  food  is  relatively  the  largest,  the  smallest  amount  is 
burned  in  the  muscular  and  nervous  systems,  and  there 
is  the  largest  balance  remaining  for  growth.  In  early 
childhood  a  fair  amount  is  used  by  the  fundamental 
muscles,  but  the  demands  of  the  nervous  system  are 
relatively  small.  Growth  is  still  the  main  business  of 
life,  and  the  use  of  the  muscles  is  a  means  to  this  grand 
end. 

In  later  childhood  and  early  youth,  until  twelve  or 
thirteen  in  the  girl,  and  a  year  or  two  later  in  the  boy, 


88  GROWTH   AND   EDUCATION 

the  growth  is  more  in  length  than  in  girth,  and  the 
legs  are  growing  faster  than  the  trunk.  We  shall  find 
reason  to  believe  that  this  growth  in  length  and  mostly 
in  the  appendages  is  an  especially  expensive  and  ex- 
hausting process.  Adolescence  is  accompanied  by  a  rapid 
increase  in  girth  and  weight,  and  during  its  later  phase 
growth  in  height  is  mostly  devoted  to  lengthening  the 
trunk.  This  is  quite  another  form  of  growth  from  in- 
crease in  length  of  leg,  and  has  a  very  different  mean- 
ing and  effect. 

At  sixteen  or  seventeen  in  the  girl,  and  a  few  years 
later  in  the  boy,  growth  has  nearly  ceased.  Still  very 
important  changes  are  taking  place  in  the  body,  con- 
sisting in  the  maturing,  hardening,  and  toughening  of 
the  tissues.  The  endurance  and  power  to  resist  unfavor- 
able conditions  are  not  yet  great.  During  adolescence 
and  a  little  later,  the  higher  centres  in  the  brain  are 
maturing,  and  their  expenses  increase.  Mental  excite- 
ment is  an  even  heavier  drain  on  the  resources  of  the 
body  than  muscular  effort. 

After  maturity,  when  the  tissues  have  become  solidi- 
fied, and  the  organs  have  settled  into  a  permanent  equi- 
librium, is  the  great  time  for  productive  work.  Energy 
is  abundant.  It  is  used  with  economy,  because  the  parts 
are  in  smooth  working  order,  as  well  as  because  of  prac- 
tice and  training.  The  male  has  a  small  balance  to  de- 
vote to  reproduction.  The  female  at,  and  for  a  time 
before,  maturity  economizes  material.  She  takes  in 
less  oxygen,  wastes  less,  and  thus  accumulates  the  store 
needed  by  the  reproductive  system. 

The  demands  of  the  reproductive  system  decrease. 
The  appetite  and  the  assimilative  power  both  decline 
after  forty-five  or  fifty.   Male  and  female  differ  less  in 


GROWTH  OF  THE  VISCERAL  ORGANS  89 

their  metabolism.  There  is  still  energy  for  much  hard 
work,  but  it  must  be  used  with  care  and  economy.  In 
old  age  income  and  expenses  are  both  small  and  con- 
stantly decreasing.  Soon  the  weakest  part  gives  way, 
and  death  ensues. 

Thus  the  different  body  at  different  ages  requires 
different  kinds  and  amounts  of  nourishment,  and  uses 
its  income  for  quite  different  purposes.  Viewed  as  a 
machine  for  modifying  the  form  and  results  of  energy 
and  material  the  child  is  a  totally  different  being  from 
the  youth,  and  the  youth  differs  greatly  from  the  adult. 

Our  study  of  the  neuro-muscular  system  showed  us 
clearly  that  different  parts  of  the  same  system  grow  and 
mature  at  different  ages.  In  infancy  and  early  child- 
hood the  trunk  muscles  are  relatively  heaviest.  Then 
the  legs  grow,  afterward  the  arms.  The  baby  and  young 
child  walk  and  run ;  the  older  child  climbs,  tugs,  and 
pulls,  and  exercises  his  arms.  The  ringers  gain  strength 
and  precision  of  movement  last  of  all. 

In  the  brain  the  sensory  centres  are  the  first  to  grow 
rapidly  and  mature,  then  the  different  motor  centres 
of  legs,  upper  arm  and  forearm,  wrist  and  hand,  suc- 
cessively, but  overlapping  one  another  in  their  acceler- 
ations of  growth.  It  is  no  small  matter  to  develop  and 
train  so  many  muscles  and  motor  centres  properly.  The 
sensory  centres  also  need  long  practice  and  much  care- 
ful exercise,  if  child  and  adult  are  to  know  the  world 
exactly  as  it  is.  Only  when  these  centres  have  been 
fully  grown  and  properly  developed  can  the  higher  men- 
tal centres  in  the  brain  reach  their  highest  efficiency. 
Motor  and  sensory  powers  are  the  foundation  on  which 
all  the  higher  mental  and  moral  efficiency  rest.  The 
foundation  must  be  laid  deep  and  strong.    We  should 


90  GROWTH   AND   EDUCATION 

not  grudge  time  or  pains  for  this  essential  part  of  the 
growth,  development,  and  training  of  our  men  and 
women  of  power. 

In  infancy  and  early  childhood  the  visceral  organs 
are  relatively  large  and  heavy.  The  legs  are  short,  the 
trunk  long  and  nearly  cylindrical.  Nature  is  devoting 
her  energy  to  the  digestion  and  assimilation  of  the  larg- 
est possible  amount  of  food  and  to  the  removal  of 
waste.  Infancy  is  a  period  of  almost  vegetative  life, 
and  the  same  is  true  to  quite  an  extent  of  early  child- 
hood. At  the  same  time  stomach,  heart,  lungs,  and  kid- 
neys are  stimulated  by  the  use  of  the  heavy  muscles, 
and  their  healthy  growth  is  insured.  The  small  size  and 
weight  of  the  heart  and  the  low  blood-pressure  favor 
growth  rather  than  muscular  or  nervous  efficiency. 

Before  eleven  or  twelve  there  are  few  really  mental 
interests.  The  higher  centres  of  the  brain  are  not  ma- 
ture enough  to  crave  much  exercise.  The  child  thinks  ; 
but  must  think  as  a  child,  not  as  a  man.  Nature  will 
cooperate  with  us  in  the  development  of  the  sensory 
powers  in  infancy  and  early  childhood.  After  five  or 
six  she  bids  us  exercise  the  motor  powers.  She  does 
not  ask  for  athletics,  but  for  sufficient  suitable  exercise 
to  promote  the  healthy  growth  of  the  muscles  and  vital 
organs,  and  through  these  of  the  brain.  She  is  now  in- 
tent upon  producing  a  well-grown  and  healthy  body, 
the  first  and  essential  step  toward  the  production  of 
men  and  women  of  power  and  efficiency. 

We  shall  see  x  that  the  average  girl  between  ten  and 
fifteen  has  only  about  three  fourths,  at  most,  of  the 
lung  capacity  which  she  attains  with  suitable  exercise. 
The  lung  capacity  of  the  average  boy  during  these  years 

1  See  page  166. 


GROWTH  OF  THE  VISCERAL  ORGANS  91 

is  probably  somewhat  or  considerably  below  what  it 
should  and  easily  might  be.  Well  oxygenated  blood  is 
absolutely  essential  to  good  digestion  and  assimilation, 
to  removal  of  waste,  to  endurance  of  and  success  in 
work  of  any  kind,  and  to  resistance  to  disease.  We 
have  seen  that  bright  children,  certainly  during  these 
years  and  probably  at  all  ages,  have  larger  lung  capac- 
ity than  dull  ones.  The  lung  capacity  is  the  best  crite- 
rion of  the  health  and  vigor  of  the  child. 

It  is  evidently  of  the  highest  importance  that  we 
should  increase  the  lung  capacity  of  children  in  all  the 
grades  by  abundant  exercise  in  the  open  air.  For  the 
same  reason  the  ventilation  of  our  schoolrooms,  espe- 
cially for  children  of  the  lower  grades,  is  of  the  utmost 
importance. 


CHAPTER  VII 

MORTALITY  AND  MORBIDITY 

We  study  the  rates  of  death  and  disease  among  children 
and  youth  to  discover,  if  we  can,  what  are  their  periods 
of  weakness  and  of  strength.  It  is  of  course  of  great 
importance  that  we  should  know  just  when  the  child 
has  the  least  power  of  resistance,  and  needs  the  most 
care  and  more  or  less  leniency  in  the  tasks  assigned  to 
him. 

We  cannot  study  tables  of  death-rates  without  notic- 
ing that  they  are  much  higher  in  some  countries  and 
cities  than  in  others.  In  some  tables  they  are  so  low  at 
certain  ages  as  to  be  scarcely  credible.  But  we  may 
expect  that  differences  in  the  methods  of  taking  statis- 
tics or  of  making  out  tables  would  affect  all  ages  some- 
where nearly  alike.  The  question  which  interests  us 
most  is  not  the  absolute  death-rate  or  the  health  of 
any  particular  city  or  country,  but  the  relative  rate  at 
different  ages. 

All  tables  agree  in  certain  general  results.  We  notice 
first  the  exceedingly  high  death-rate  of  the  first  year  of 
life.  In  both  Boston  and  Germany  twenty-five  per  cent 
or  more  of  all  children  die  during  the  first  year.  The 
high  death-rate  in  Boston  at  this  age  need  not  surprise 
us,  for  we  expect  it  in  a  city ;  though  even  here  it  is 
higher  than  is  necessary.  In  Norway,  a  healthy  country 
of  farms  and  villages  and  of  few  cities,  it  rises  hardly 


MORTALITY  AND  MORBIDITY  93 

above  ten  per  cent,  even  for  boys.  During  the  first  three 
or  four  years  the  death-rate  remains  high,  though  de- 
clining rapidly.  Between  ten  and  fifteen  very  few  chil- 
dren die.  They  have  outlived  the  dangers  of  infancy 
and  have  not  reached  those  of  adult  life.  The  minimum 
death-rate  occurs,  in  Boston  "  and  in  Norway  at  twelve, 
in  England  at  eleven,  in  Germany  at  large  at  thirteen, 
in  Berlin  at  twelve  or  fourteen.  The  lowest  death-rate 
among  girls  is,  in  Boston  and  in  England  at  eleven,  in 
Norway  at  twelve,  and  in  Germany  at  large  at  thirteen, 
in  Berlin  at  twelve,  fourteen,  and  fifteen,  during  differ- 
ent years.  The  differences  between  the  different  ages 
between  eleven  and  fourteen  are  usually  slight.  After 
this  the  death-rate  rises  somewhat  slowly  until  about 
seventeen  or  eighteen,  when  there  is  frequently  a  some- 
what sudden  rise. 

During  the  first  two  years  of  life  far  more  boys  die 
than  girls.  Between  five  and  fifteen  more  girls  die  than 
boys,  though  the  difference  is  usually  not  very  marked 
in  most  countries,  and  may  be  explained  by  the  suppo- 
sition that  the  more  severe  selection  in  infancy  has  al- 
ready weeded  out  the  weakest  among  the  boys.  Between 
eighteen  and  twenty-one  the  death-rate  is  higher  among 
the  boys.  After  the  thirtieth  or  thirty-fifth  year  the 
superior  tenacity  of  life  in  the  female  i3  still  more  mani- 
fest ;  after  sixty  the  preponderance  of  women  becomes 
quite  marked.  Havelock  Ellis 2  seems  to  prove  that  the 
constitutional  vitality  of  the  woman  is  greater  at  all 
ages,  except  in  youth,  than  that  of  the  male.  This  leads 
to  the  question  whether  her  higher  death-rate  between 

1  Hartwell,  Report  of  Director  of  Physical  Training,  Boston,  School 
Doc.  no.  8,  p.  45. 

2  Man  and  Woman,  London,  1894. 


94  GROWTH  AND  EDUCATION 

fifteen  and  twenty,  wherever  this  is  the  rule,  is  not  due 
to  wrong  training  or  conditions  of  life,  and  whether  it  is 
not  therefore  avoidable. 

Are  we  justified  in  concluding  that  the  years  of  low- 
est death-rate  are  those  of  greatest  power  of  resistance 
to  disease  and  of  greatest  health  and  vigor  ?  Probably 
this  is  true  to  a  certain  extent.  We  often  say  that  if 
a  child  or  youth  can  be  "  tided  over  "  certain  years,  he 
will  probably  outgrow  his  weakness.  If  there  is  any 
defect  or  disease  in  the  organism,  it  will  be  more  likely 
to  produce  fatal  results  at  the  time  when  the  body  is 
weakest.  This  probably  explains  a  part  of  the  death- 
rate  between  seventeen  and  twenty-one,  and  may  explain 
certain  irregularities  at  other  ages.  Acute  and  zymotic 
diseases  might  be  expected  to  result  fatally  in  a  larger 
proportion  of  cases  if  occurring  at  years  of  reduced 
vigor. 

But  this  is  only  one  half  of  the  truth.  Natural  death 
is  never  really  sudden.  It  is  only  the  sudden  culmina- 
tion of  a  disease  which  has  been  lurking  and  working 
in  the  system  for  a  longer  or  shorter  period.  A  girl 
of  eighteen  dies  of  consumption.  This  disease,  if  un- 
checked, would  produce  death  after  a  certain  number  of 
years,  whether  the  period  was  one  of  vigor  or  of  weak- 
ness. The  important  question  for  us  is  not :  When  did 
the  girl  die?  but,  When  did  she  contract  the  disease  ? 
For  this  age  also  was  probably  one  of  weakness.  The 
earlier  date  is  also  the  time  when  we  can  use  the  ounce 
of  prevention  which  is  worth  more  than  the  pound  of 
cure.  The  age  of  death  only  sets  a  date  when  it  is  no 
longer  possible  to  prevent  the  catastrophe.  Hence, 
while  tables  of  mortality  are  useful,  they  must  be  sup- 
plemented by  tables  of   morbidity  showing  when  the 


MORTALITY  AND  MORBIDITY  95 

child  or  youth  is  most  likely  to  show  signs  of  decreased 
resisting  power. 

Such  tables  should  show  the  prevalence  of  chronic 
diseases  or  disorders.  Measles  and  diphtheria  may  at- 
tack even  the  healthy.  But  the  period  of  the  contagious 
and  infectious  diseases  passes  mostly  with  early  child- 
hood. Unhealthy  conditions  of  the  body,  poverty  of 
blood,  loss  of  appetite,  nervousness,  headaches,  sleep- 
lessness, show  a  low  tone  of  health  and  liability  to  in- 
fection, and  warn  us  to  be  on  our  guard.  I  can  find  no 
such  reports  for  America.  But  they  have  been  prepared 
in  Sweden,  in  Denmark,  and  in  parts  of  Germany,  and 
elsewhere.  We  may  begin  with  the  boys'  schools  in 
Denmark  as  studied  by  the  Danish  Commission  in 
1884.1  We  find  that  the  boy  enters  school  in  compar- 
atively good  health,  only  19  per  cent  showing  chronic 
sickness  or  disorder.  In  the  ninth  year  the  amount  of 
sickness  has  increased  to  28  per  cent,  an  increase  of 
almost  50  per  cent.  The  morbidity  rises  very  slowly 
to  31  per  cent  in  the  thirteenth  year.  It  then  de- 
clines slightly  until  the  sixteenth  year.  In  the  eight- 
eenth year  there  is  a  sudden  rise  shown  by  the  pupils 
of  the  gymnasia  and  Realschulen.  In  these  schools 
the  percentages  of  sickness  are  usually  high.  Hertel 
concludes  that  the  high  rate  of  morbidity  in  the  acade- 
mies and  gymnasia  is  due  largely  to  overpressure.  The 
free  city  schools  include  the  children  of  the  poorest 
families  living  under  unfavorable  conditions,  and  these 
show  a  high  rate  of  sickness.  The  children  in  the  Real- 
schulen and  the  peasants'  sons  seem  to  be  the  healthiest 
classes  at  the  time  of  entering  school.  The  lowest  rate 
of  sickness  was  in  the  orphanage  at  Copenhagen.    These 

1  Hertel,  Overpressure. 


96  GROWTH  AND  EDUCATION 

children  are  probably  constitutionally  weak,  but  are 
kept  in  comparatively  good  health  by  care  and  hygienic 
surroundings.  This  fact  alone  would  suffice  to  prove 
that  a  large  amount  of  the  ill  health  is  preventable. 

According  to  the  report  of  the  Swedish  Commission • 
the  boys  of  the  more  favored  classes  in  the  city  of 
Stockholm  enter  school  in  their  eighth  year  in  fair 
health.  The  rate  of  sickness  is  17  per  cent.  In  the 
ninth  year,  the  second  year  of  school,  the  rate  has  more 
than  doubled  and  amounts  to  36.7  per  cent.  There  is 
a  slight  decrease  in  the  tenth  year,  but  in  the  eleventh 
the  rate  rises  again  to  40  per  cent.  These  figures  ap- 
ply to  the  schools  in  the  city  of  Stockholm  alone,  and 
here  the  rate  is  higher  than  elsewhere.  In  the  common 
schools  of  Sweden  the  rate  of  sickness  in  the  twelfth 
year  is  34.4  per  cent.  It  rises  to  a  little  over  37  per 
cent  in  the  thirteenth  year  and  touches  38  per  cent  in 
the  fourteenth.  It  now  declines.  In  the  seventeenth 
year  it  is  about  35  per  cent  in  the  Latin  schools  and 
20  per  cent  in  the  Realschulen.  In  the  nineteenth  year 
in  the  Latin  schools,  and  in  the  twentieth  of  the  Real- 
schulen,  it  rises  almost  or  quite  to  40  per  cent.  The 
rate  of  sickness  is  higher  than  in  Denmark,  partly 
because  the  examination  was  made  in  the  autumn  in 
Denmark  and  in  the  spring  in  Sweden.  But  in  both 
countries  it  follows  the  same  general  course. 

Key  admits  and  emphasizes  the  responsibility  of 
school  life  with  its  confinement  and  overpressure  for 
the  high  rate  of  sickness  among  the  pupils.  But  he 
argues,  apparently  with  good  reason,  for  the  connection 
of  the  course  of  the  curve  of  morbidity  with  pubertal 

1  Key,  Schulhygienische  Untersuchungen,  pp.  21  and  134 ;  Key,  Puber- 
tatsentwickelung. 


MORTALITY  AND  MORBIDITY  97 

development.  The  curve  rises  until  thirteen  or  fourteen, 
which  is  the  period  of  most  rapid  increase  in  height. 
As  soon  as  the  more  rapid  increase  in  weight  begins, 
there  is  an  increase  in  power  of  resistance,  and  the  rate 
of  morbidity  sinks.  When,  about  the  seventeenth  or 
eighteenth  year,  growth  diminishes  rapidly  and  soon 
ceases,  the  rate  rises  again  rapidly  to  its  second  maxi- 
mum. This  view  has  found  general,  if  not  universal, 
acceptance.  In  this  case  the  maxima  and  minima 
of  sickness  should  appear  earlier  or  later  in  different 
countries  coincident  with  the  hastening  or  delay  of 
puberty.  This  also  seems  to  be  the  fact.  The  general 
contour  of  the  curve,  with  its  maxima  at  about  thirteen 
and  eighteen  or  nineteen,  and  its  minima  at  seven  and 
sixteen,  is  fixed  by  the  laws  of  growth,  and  hence  the 
curves  for  different  cities  and  countries  will  be  similar. 

But  one  country  or  city  may  have  a  higher  rate  of 
sickness  at  nearly  all  ages.  Thus  there  is  more  sickness 
in  Stockholm  than  in  the  smaller  cities  and  towns  of 
Sweden.  Again,  the  maxima  in  one  country  are  often 
higher  than  in  another,  as  in  Sweden  compared  with 
Denmark.  So  in  different  schools.  In  Denmark  the 
academies  had  the  highest  rate,  with  the  gymnasia 
next,  and  the  Realschulen  last.  In  such  cases,  when  the 
boys  come  from  similar  stock  and  surroundings,  and 
the  examination  is  made  at  the  same  season  and  under 
similar  conditions,  it  seems  reasonable  to  explain  the 
greater  amount  of  sickness  by  the  conditions  of  school 
life. 

Dr.  Schmid-Monnard1  in  Halle  arrived  at  similar  con- 
clusions from  the  study  of  about  four  thousand  children. 

1  Schmid-Monnard,  "  Die  Chronische  Kranklichkeit,"  Zeits.f.  Schul. 
x,  598,  666. 


98  GROWTH  AND  EDUCATION 

The  boys  entered  the  common  schools  with  a  very  small 
rate  of  sickness,  only  3  per  cent.  In  the  ninth  year 
the  sickness  had  risen  to  about  30  per  cent.  It  sank 
during  the  tenth  and  eleventh,  rose  during  the  twelfth 
to  almost  40  per  cent,  and  then  sank  during  the  thir- 
teenth and  fourteenth  years  to  under  20  per  cent. 
His  examination  included  no  children  in  these  schools 
after  the  fourteenth  year. 

The  boys  in  the  gymnasia  and  Realschulen  close 
their  first  school  year  with  a  high  rate  of  sickness, 
21  per  cent.  Schmid-Monnard  attributes  this  very 
largely  to  the  change  from  freedom  to  confinement 
and  to  the  work  of  the  year.  In  the  second  school  year 
the  rate  falls  to  about  14  per  cent.  In  the  ninth 
or  tenth  year  the  classes  are  divided,  one  set  having 
school  hours  in  the  afternoon,  the  other  not.  Those 
without  school  hours  in  the  afternoon  have  an  average 
of  about  25  per  cent  of  sickness,  with  maxima 
in  the  fourteenth  and  seventeenth  years  of  30  per 
cent  and  40  per  cent  respectively.  The  boys  who 
have  school  hours  in  the  afternoon  have  a  markedly 
higher  rate  of  sickness.  Their  maxima  are,  at  thirteen 
and  sixteen,  60  per  cent  to  70  per  cent !  The  dif- 
ference between  the  two  sets  is  greatest  at  eighteen. 
The  rate  of  sickness  of  those  having  afternoon  hours  is 
almost  60  per  cent,  while  in  those  having  the  after- 
noons free  it  is  less  than  10  per  cent.  We  may  readily 
believe  that  those  who  are  compelled  to  attend  school 
in  the  afternoon  are  the  slower,  less  efficient,  and 
weaker,  but  granting  all  this,  the  figures  show  what 
can  be  accomplished  by  the  forcing  process  with  boys 
of  this  kind. 

Many  other  European   investigations  of  a   similar 


MORTALITY  AND   MORBIDITY  99 

character,  which,  however,  give  only  the  grades,  but  not 
the  ages  of  the  boys,  could  be  cited  to  prove  that  there 
is  a  gradual  if  not  steady  increase  of  sickness  up  to 
the  twelfth  or  fourteenth  year.  This  fact  would  seem 
to  be  established  beyond  controversy. 

We  may  now  notice  the  corresponding  reports  con- 
cerning the  health  of  girls. 

The  Danish  Commission  reported  concerning  11,646 
girls  of  all  ages.  Of  those  in  the  sixth  year  (probably 
really  the  seventh,  between  six  and  seven),  25  per  cent 
were  sick.  The  percentage  rises  steadily  to  43  per  cent  in 
the  tenth  year,  and  reaches  its  maximum,  51  per  cent, 
in  the  thirteenth  year.  Then  it  dectines  to  40  per 
cent  in  the  sixteenth  year.  The  total  average  for  all 
schools  and  ages  was  41  per  cent,  compared  with 
29  per  cent  for  the  boys.  But  in  the  Jagerspris  home 
the  average  of  sickness  between  seven  and  fifteen  was 
only  20  per  cent.  This  shows  the  reduction  in  the 
amount  of  sickness  which  Dr.  Vahl  was  able  to  attain 
by  wise  and  careful  treatment. 

In  Sweden  the  morbidity  in  the  higher  schools  for 
girls  was  28  per  cent  in  the  eighth  year.  In  the 
ninth  it  rose  to  50  per  cent ;  in  the  tenth  there  was 
a  slight  improvement.  After  this  the  percentage  rose 
steadily  to  its  first  maximum,  64.8  per  cent  (!)  in  the  thir- 
teenth year.  There  is,  then,  a  somewhat  irregular  decline 
to  62  per  cent  in  the  seventeenth  year  followed  by  a  rise 
to  68  per  cent  in  the  eighteenth  year.  In  the  nineteenth 
year  the  rate  fell  to  60.3  per  cent.  The  Danish  and 
Swedish  curves  of  morbidity  of  girls  follow  very  similar 
lines  to  those  for  the  boys.  But  the  rate  of  morbidity 
is  higher  in  the  girls,  and  their  improvement  during 
late  adolescence  is  tardy  and  less  marked. 


100  GROWTH  AND  EDUCATION 

Key's  table  for  anaemia,  a  disease  very  prevalent 
among  girls  and  characteristic  of  a  low  tone  of  vitality, 
is  very  instructive.  Between  the  seventh  and  ninth 
years  15  to  18  per  cent  of  the  girls  suffer  from 
this  disorder.  The  percentage  rises  to  39.7  per  cent 
in  the  thirteenth  year,  changes  but  slightly  during  the 
fourteenth,  sinks  to  33.3  per  cent  in  the  fifteenth,  and 
remains  at  about  40  per  cent  between  the  sixteenth  and 
nineteenth  years. 

Schmid-Monnard  found  about  20  per  cent  of  sickness 
among  girls  at  the  close  of  the  first  year  of  school,  aged 
seven.  In  the  tenth  and  eleventh  years  the  percentage 
doubled  (40  per  cent).  In  the  thirteenth  year  it  rose 
to  50  per  cent,  and  fell  in  the  fourteenth  year  to  25 
per  cent.  But  in  one  of  the  higher  schools  for  about 
five  hundred  girls,  where,  from  the  tenth  to  the  fifteenth 
years,  about  80  per  cent  did  extra  outside  work,  the  per- 
centage from  the  fourteenth  to  the  sixteenth  years  was 
nearly  60. 

Hertel  found  that  at  six  the  difference  between  the 
sexes  was  very  slight.  Between  eleven  and  fourteen  the 
percentage  of  sickness  was  : 

Anaemia.  Frequent  Headaches. 

Boys  8.3  per  cent  2.4  per  cent 

Girls  22.0  8.3 

Schmid-Monnard  gives  the  following  figures  : 

Headache.  Nose-hleed.  Sleeplessness. 

Boys     14.0  per  cent  or  less.    6.0  per  cent  or  less.   2.0  per  cent  or  less 
Girls    30.0  9.0  3.0 

We  should  not  pass  by  a  statement  of  Dr.  Crichton- 
Browne  in  his  Introduction  to  Dr.  Hertel's  "  Overpress- 
ure." He  speaks  of  the  prevalence  of  consumption  in 
highly  educated  and  cultivated  young  women.    He  says 


MORTALITY  AND  MORBIDITY  101 

in  substance :  at  all  ages  above  thirty-five  men  die  of 
consumption  more  frequently  than  women,  and  from 
twenty  to  thirty-five  the  numbers  are  almost  equal  in 
the  two  sexes.  Between  fifteen  and  twenty  the  death- 
rate  from  this  disease  is  almost  three  times  as  high 
among  females  as  among  males.  The  disease  has  de- 
creased lately  far  less  in  girls  between  five  and  fifteen 
than  at  other  ages,  or  among  boys.  I  can  find  no  statis- 
tics for  the  same  class  of  population  in  America,  and 
do  not  know  whether  his  figures  would  hold  good  here 
or  not. 

It  would  seem  highly  probable  that  the  increased 
death-rate  of  girls  at  eighteen  and  thereabout  from  con- 
sumption and  other  diseases  of  relatively  slow  action  is 
the  culmination  of  an  attack  begun  at  thirteen  or  four- 
teen. If  we  are  to  diminish  this  death-rate,  we  must 
fortify  the  girl  against  the  period  of  greatest  weakness, 
when  she  is  most  likely  to  receive  hospitably  the  germs 
of  fatal  diseases.  To  accomplish  this  we  must  not  wait 
until  the  twelfth  or  thirteenth  year,  but  meet  the  diffi- 
culty early  in  childhood.  Much  the  same  might  be  said 
of  the  invalidism  which  overtakes  many  of  our  women 
between  twenty  and  thirty.  The  same  might  be  said  of 
the  boy  also,  though  his  morbidity  is  not  as  high.  We 
shall  return  to  this  subject  again  when  we  consider  the 
period  of  puberty. 

We  may  now  attempt  to  draw  from  these  investiga- 
tions of  conditions  in  Northern  Europe  conclusions 
applicable  in  America.  There  is  a  growing  conviction 
among  those  best  informed  that  there  is  great  over- 
pressure in  the  schools  of  these  countries,  and  that  this 
is  responsible  for  a  good  part  of  the  sickness.  No  one 
can  study  the  investigations  without  feeling  that  sick- 


102  GROWTH  AND  EDUCATION 

ness  increases  in  proportion  to  the  hours  of  school  and 
home  work,  and  that  it  is  inversely  proportional  to  the 
amount  of  sleep  and  exercise.  Is  there  overpressure  in 
the  average  American  school?  and  if  so,  how  much? 
Here  again  statistics  are  lacking,  and  the  answer  is 
largely  dependent  upon  individual  opinion  and  observa- 
tion. I  cannot  believe  that  the  pressure  in  our  Amer- 
ican schools  is  generally  as  severe  as  in  those  of  Northern 
Europe.  But  in  this  respect  no  two  schools  or  classes 
are  at  all  alike.  The  amount  of  time  devoted  to  rest, 
physical  exercise,  and  recreation  varies  extraordinarily. 
The  home  conditions  of  the  pupils  are  not  the  same. 
One  teacher  is  very  severe,  another  very  easy. 

We  have  some  very  valuable  studies  of  fatigue,  and 
concerning  the  difficulty  of  mastering  different  sub- 
jects. Here  again,  however,  we  have  to  bear  in  mind 
that  the  amount  of  fatigue  produced  by  a  study  varies 
greatly  according  to  the  method  of  teaching.  Good  tem- 
per, enthusiasm,  and  an  even  discipline  in  the  teacher 
can  make  even  a  difficult  subject  easy  and  enjoyable. 
A  mile's  walk  in  a  treadmill  is  far  more  exhausting 
than  along  a  country  road  or  through  woods.  A  study 
introduced  too  early  is  very  likely  to  cause  fatigue  and 
discouragement  because  it  strains  nascent  powers  and 
awakens  little  or  no  interest.  The  same  study  a  year 
later  might  be  easy  and  interesting.  It  would  seem  to  be 
an  easy  matter  for  every  school  to  obtain  from  parents 
a  statement  of  the  amount  of  time  devoted  to  studies 
and  to  other  duties,  and  of  the  number  of  hours  spent 
in  sleep  and  in  outdoor  exercise.  The  opinion  of  the 
family  physician  concerning  the  health  of  the  pupil 
would  also  be  invaluable.  This  is  already  done  in  most 
schools,  and  should  be  the  rule  of  all.    The  important 


MORTALITY  AND   MORBIDITY  103 

question  is  not,  as  so  many  seem  to  think :  Do  the  de- 
mands of  the  school  threaten  seriously  and  evidently  to 
injure  the  pupil  ?  but,  Are  they  suited  in  amount  and 
kind  to  produce  the  best  growth  and  development  of  all 
his  powers  ?  We  wish  to  require  what  will  thoroughly 
exercise  and  invigorate  mind  and  body,  not  all  that  can 
be  endured.  These  two  standards  and  limits  are  quite 
different,  and  neither  one  of  them  has  yet  been  clearly 
determined.  Here  is  an  exceedingly  important  problem, 
which  still  awaits  solution. 

However  we  may  answer  these  questions,  however 
high  or  low  we  may  set  the  percentage  of  weakness  or 
sickness  in  the  different  grades  of  different  schools,  cer- 
tain facts  are  evidently  clear.  The  amount  of  sickness 
tends  to  increase  from  about  seven  to  thirteen  or  four- 
teen, and  there  is  as  a  rule  a  marked  rise  about  the 
eighth  year,  soon  after  the  child  enters  school.  The 
school  may  or  may  not  be  responsible  for  this  rise  in 
morbidity,  but  it  should  certainly  mitigate  and  remedy 
it  just  so  far  as  it  possibly  can.  The  period  of  rapid 
increase  in  height  is  always  a  period  of  comparative 
weakness,  and  demands  attention,  care,  and  some  mercy. 
There  is  a  second  period  of  weakness  or  of  decreased 
power  of  resistance  at  the  close  of  growth,  beginning 
usually  about  sixteen  in  the  girl  and  somewhat  later  in 
the  boy.  However  great  our  ignorance  of  many  import- 
ant questions,  this  much  is  clear,  and  it  demands  our 
most  careful  thought  and  consideration. 


CHAPTER  VIII 

CONSTITUTION   AND   PERIODS   OF  LIFE 

Rates  of  mortality  and  of  morbidity  are  anything 
but  constant  in  the  life  of  the  child.  In  infancy  both 
are  high ;  at  six  both  are  low ;  at  about  seventeen  or 
eighteen  both  have  risen ;  at  thirteen  mortality  is  at 
a  minimum,  and  morbidity  near  its  maximum.  If  either 
one  or  both  of  these  rates  give  us  any  criterion  of 
strength  and  vigor,  it  is  clear  that  the  health  of  the 
child  is  far  from  a  constant  quantity.  Development 
is  in  all  respects  rhythmical.  Periods  of  strength  and 
of  weakness  alternate  with  each  other,  as  do  periods  of 
acceleration  and  retardation  in  growth  in  height  and 
weight. 

Is  it  not  true,  therefore,  in  a  certain  sense,  that  the 
constitution  of  the  child  differs  at  different  ages?  Of 
course  the  constitution  is  originally  inherited  from  the 
parents,  and  is  strong  or  weak  accordingly.  As  a  rule 
the  length  of  our  lives  is  roughly  proportional  to  that 
of  our  parents  and  ancestors.  The  importance  of  this 
fact  is  recognized  by  every  life  insurance  company. 
Some  families  have  a  marked  liability  to  certain  dis- 
eases :  gout,  consumption,  or  typhoid  fever  ;  others  are 
almost  immune.  The  strong  or  slight  reaction  to  drugs, 
poisons,  stings,  etc.,  is  sometimes  characteristic  of  all 
the  members  of  a  family. 

But  a  good  or  bad  constitution  is  not  an  inalienable 
endowment.    The  best  constitution  may  be  injured  or 


CONSTITUTION  AND   PERIODS  OF  LIFE       105 

weakened  by  excesses,  and  a  bad  constitution  may  be 
greatly  improved.  Probably  a  disease  is  never  actually 
inherited,  but  only  more  or  less  of  a  liability  or  tend- 
ency to  contract  it.  This  tendency,  if  treated  promptly, 
can  be  eradicated  or  greatly  weakened. 

We  have  all  noticed  that  individuals  and  families  dif- 
fer greatly  in  stature,  weight,  and  in  size  of  bones  and 
muscles.  A  man  of  light  muscles  and  small  strength 
cannot  do  the  day's  work  of  a  strong  man  without  con- 
siderable effort.  Similarly  individuals  vary  in  the  size, 
weight,  and  strength  of  their  internal  organs.  Lung 
capacity  is  exceedingly  variable.  The  capacity  of  the 
heart  and  the  girth  of  the  great  arteries  may  be  almost 
fifty  per  cent  greater  in  one  adult  than  in  another  of  the 
same  size  and  weight.  The  amount  of  blood  probably 
differs  very  considerably  in  different  individuals. 

A  small  heart  can  do  the  work  normally  required  of 
a  large  one  only  under  strain.  If  it  has  to  pump  the 
blood  through  smaller  arteries,  it  must  work  against 
greater  friction.  If  the  burdens  of  life  are  heavy  or 
the  body  has  been  weakened  by  disease,  this  strain  upon 
the  heart  may  have  serious  or  fatal  consequences. 
Beneke  found  that  an  unusually  large  proportion  of 
those  who  died  in  an  epidemic  of  typhoid  fever  had 
arteries  below  the  average  size. 

The  same  or  even  greater  variations  in  the  size  of 
the  internal  organs  may  occur  in  infancy.  Hearts  of 
hardly  more  than  one  third  of  the  normal  size  have  been 
found  in  the  new-born.  Such  a  child  will  probably  die. 
If  the  heart  is  somewhat  larger  he  may  live,  but  he  will 
probably  have  a  weak  constitution.  Or  the  heart  may 
be  strengthened  and  enlarged  by  judicious  exercise,  and 
the  constitutional  weakness  outgrown. 


106  GROWTH   AND   EDUCATION 

The  same  may  be  said  of  all  the  internal  organs. 
The  body  is  rarely  made  quite  right  in  all  respects. 
There  is  usually  a  weakest  part  somewhere,  and  one 
great  opportunity  and  use  of  education  is  to  make  this 
weakest  part  just  as  strong  as  the  rest.  We  have  hardly 
begun  to  realize  the  importance  and  the  possibilities  of 
hygienic  and  preventive  medicine.  But  the  cure  should 
be  commenced  as  early  as  possible. 

Evidently  a  strong  and  sound  constitution  requires 
a  proper  balance  of  organs.  The  income  furnished  by 
the  digestive  system  and  the  lungs  must  equal  the  ex- 
penses caused  by  growth  or  by  muscular  or  nervous 
exercise.  The  heart  must  be  equal  to  its  emergencies. 
Rapid  growth  or  vigorous  exercise  demands  a  good  cir- 
culation to  bring  material,  fuel,  and  oxygen,  to  the 
tissues,  and  to  remove  their  waste.  If  any  organ  is 
disproportionately  small,  it  cannot  do  its  share  of  the 
work.  If  it  is  too  large,  it  either  lacks  proper  and 
sufficient  exercise,  or  it  robs  or  strains  the  weaker  parts 
of  the  body. 

But  the  relative  size  and  the  balance  of  organs  is 
not  at  all  the  same  in  the  young  child  and  in  the  adult. 
Roughly  and  approximately,  between  birth  and  matur- 
ity the  muscles  increase  in  weight  about  thirty-seven- 
fold ;  the  lungs  about  eighteen-fold ;  liver,  heart,  and 
kidneys  about  twelve  or  thirteen-fold.  The  young  child 
requires  far  more  food  and  oxygen,  and  produces  far 
more  carbon  dioxide,  energy  and  waste  for  each  pound 
of  weight  than  the  adult.  In  the  baby  the  vegetative 
processes,  digestion,  assimilation,  and  growth,  are  most 
prominent ;  in  the  boy  and  girl,  locomotion ;  in  the 
adult,  productive  work. 

If  adults  and  children  of  different  ages  have  different 


CONSTITUTION  AND   PERIODS  OF  LIFE       107 

rates  of  mortality  and  morbidity,  a  different  balance  of 
organs,  different  relative  incomes  and  modes  of  expend- 
iture, in  one  word  a  quite  different  metabolism  and 
habits,  it  is  surely  not  too  much  to  say  that  they  have 
different  constitutions  and  are  leading  different  lives. 
They  must  be  treated  and  trained  quite  differently.  In- 
ferences drawn  from  the  life,  habits,  and  needs  of  one 
age  may  not  apply  at  all  at  another.  What  is  beneficial 
to  the  adult  may  harm  the  child ;  and  the  reverse  is 
equally  true.  It  becomes  of  the  utmost  importance  that 
we  should  be  able  to  determine  accurately  the  different 
periods  in  childhood  and  youth,  and  clearly  recognize 
their  characteristics.  Otherwise  our  system  of  educa- 
tion, while  entirely  logical  according  to  adult  premises, 
and  framed  with  the  best  intent  and  with  great  ingenu- 
ity, may  do  more  harm  than  good. 

It  is  urged  that  all  our  study  of  statistics  can  give 
us  at  best  only  a  conception  of  the  average  child,  and 
that  the  average  child  does  not  exist ;  that  we  are  edu- 
cating not  average  but  actual  children.  This  is  quite 
true,  and  we  do  not  sufficiently  appreciate  its  import- 
ance. But  if  the  argument  is  intended  to  prove  that 
we  may  therefore  neglect  and  disregard  the  difference 
between  different  periods  of  life,  it  becomes  more  amus- 
ing than  convincing. 

There  is  probably  no  such  thing  as  an  average  case 
of  typhoid  fever  or  of  mumps.  The  physician  is  treat- 
ing an  actual  case  of  disease,  not  a  statistical  average. 
But  the  physician  who  diagnosed  typhoid  fever  as 
mumps,  and  claimed  that  it  made  no  difference,  for 
there  was  nothing  known  to  us  through  our  experience 
which  would  exactly  correspond  to  the  case  in  hand, 
would  hardly  be  considered  wise.    In  all  cases  of  any 


108  GROWTH  AND  EDUCATION 

disease  certain  acts  or  indulgences,  entirely  permissible 
or  beneficial  during  health,  have  to  be  avoided.  The 
wise  physician  has  a  general  idea  as  to  what  he  may 
expect,  and  can  do  or  may  not  do  in  each  case,  while  he 
is  alertly  watching  individual  peculiarities,  and  prepared 
to  meet  unexpected  complications. 

We  arrange  our  course  of  study  for  the  average  boy 
and  girl.  And  yet  they  differ  mentally  even  more  than 
physically.  We  carefully  modify  the  course  of  instruc- 
tion and  methods  to  suit  the  needs  of  the  individual 
child  whenever  and  in  so  far  as  we  can.  We  claim  for 
our  physical  study  and  training  only  that  which  is  read- 
ily granted  in  the  case  of  his  mental  education. 

We  must  always  allow  the  possibility  of  precocity 
and  of  retardation.  The  girl  matures  more  rapidly  than 
the  boy.  One  boy  of  nine  is  more  advanced  in  growth 
and  development  than  another  at  ten  or  eleven.  It  is 
always  better  to  take  precautions  too  early  rather  than 
too  late.  We  cannot  fix  the  exact  date  when  one  period 
closes  and  the  next  begins.  The  transition  is  usually 
gradual.  Yet  certain  inferences  from  our  study  of 
growth  and  its  processes  may  still  be  made,  and  they 
may  be  entirely  reliable.  Some  very  real  dangers  may 
be  seen  and  avoided,  and  some  very  general  rules  and 
suggestions  safely  deduced. 

When  we  attempt  to  divide  pre-adult  life  into  natural 
periods,  two  stand  out  very  sharply :  infancy  and  ado- 
lescence. As  President  Hall  has  clearly  shown,  adoles- 
cence has  been  recognized  as  a  most  important  epoch  in 
all  times  and  by  all  peoples.  In  savage  tribes  to-day 
the  entrance  of  the  boy  into  the  rights  and  duties  of 
manhood  is  solemnized  by  sacred  and  mysterious,  often 
hard  and  severe  if  not  cruel,  rites  and  ceremonies.    The 


CONSTITUTION  AND  PERIODS  OF  LIFE       109 

wise  Greeks  and  the  Romans  recognized  the  importance 
of  the  epoch.  We  err  greatly  in  laying  so  little  empha- 
sis on  the  attainment  of  majority. 

The  parallelism  between  infancy  and  adolescence  has 
often  been  noticed.  "  Every  man  is  born  twice  ;  once 
at  infancy,  and  again  at  adolescence."  At  birth  the 
child  enters  the  world,  and  begins  his  independent  exist- 
ence. But  his  independence  is  very  small,  his  powers 
are  limited.  His  development  is  along  racial  lines  laid 
down  by  heredity.  At  adolescence  he  enters  a  new 
world  of  social  and  political  life.  He  gains  new  powers 
and  attains  the  independence  and  freedom  foreshadowed 
at  birth.  Individual  traits  become  prominent.  He  is 
preparing  for  his  own  special  place  and  work  in  the 
world.  He  "  girds  himself  and  goes  whither  he  will." 
Soon  boy  and  girl  will  establish  a  family  of  their  own. 
They  stand  on  the  threshold  of  a  new  world. 

Each  of  the  epochs  is  preceded  by  a  period  of  prepar- 
ation. The  life  or  death  of  the  infant  depends  upon  his 
prenatal  growth  and  development.  Similarly  the  years 
of  late  childhood  and  of  early  puberty  are  a  preparation 
for  the  new  birth.  The  butterfly  is  born  a  caterpillar. 
After  a  period  of  growth  it  enters  the  cocoon.  Here  a 
thorough  and  profound  metamorphosis  takes  place,  and 
there  emerges  a  butterfly  "glittering  with  golden  wings." 
Infancy  and  early  childhood  are  hardly  more  than 
larval  "  caterpillar  "  stages.  They  more  often  mask  than 
betray  the  most  important  characteristics  of  the  adult. 
Puberty  is  a  metamorphosis. 

Each  epoch  is  characterized  by  a  rise  in  the  death- 
rate.  Nature  guards  her  doorways  with  tests  and  exam- 
inations. The  first  one  comes  at  birth.  Is  the  child  fit 
to  live?  Are  all  its  essential  vital  organs  sufficiently 


110  GROWTH  AND  EDUCATION 

sound  and  strong  to  justify  its  entrance  into  the  world  ? 
The  baby  passes  the  first  examination  with  or  without 
great  credit,  and  stands  the  test  of  the  diseases  of 
childhood.    Nature  says,  Go  on. 

Toward  the  end  of  adolescence  the  second  great  exam- 
ination period  begins,  which  will  last  far  longer.  Is  the 
youth  fitted  to  enter  upon  the  duties  and  responsibil- 
ities of  adult  life  ?  Can  the  boy  and  girl  be  of  use  in  the 
world  ?  Is  it  worth  while  to  allow  them  to  hand  down 
their  traits  and  characteristics  to  a  new  generation  ? 
Will  they  bequeath  a  sound  constitution,  red  blood, 
tough  muscles,  steady  nerves,  strong  character  ?  Or 
have  they  squandered  the  grand  estate  which  ought  to 
have  been  preserved  and  improved  for  their  descend- 
ants ?  Nature's  entail  is  often  broken.  Physical  defects, 
not  discoverable  in  infancy,  may  have  appeared.  The 
metamorphosis  may  have  been  defective  or  utterly 
unsatisfactory.    The  youth  dies. 

But  in  infancy  and  adolescence  Nature  is  patient. 
The  weak  child  is  "  conditioned,"  as  the  schools  say ; 
but  is  allowed  to  go  on.  He  may  improve  his  opportun- 
ities and  become  strong.  Or  he  may  neglect  the  warn- 
ing, and  fail  once  more  and  finally.  Some  young  men  and 
women  are  conditioned  ;  they  have  a  period  of  invalidism 
at  the  close  of  growth.  With  proper  care  and  persist- 
ent effort  they  may  completely  recover.  But  Nature 
has  her  eye  upon  them.  To  some  of  them  the  words  of 
the  prophet  are  literally  applicable  :  "  He  may  certainly 
recover  ;  howbeit  the  Lord  hath  shewed  me  that  he 
shall  surely  die." 

Useless  and  weak  men  and  women  who  have  wasted 
their  strength  in  the  riot  of  work  or  play  may  survive 
and  have  children.    Here  the  problem  becomes  more 


CONSTITUTION  AND   PERIODS  OF  LIFE       111 

difficult  and  critical.  But  the  children  may  often  still 
be  rescued.  Behind  the  weak  or  prodigal  parent  there 
was  a  long  line  of  sturdy  ancestors,  and  the  child  may 
have  inherited  much  or  most  from  them.  The  case  is 
by  no  means  hopeless.  But  such  children  should  be 
taken  in  hand  early  and  carefully.  They  need  care  and 
attention,  strengthening  and  toughening,  if  the  family 
is  to  outlive  their  generation. 

The  completeness  and  success  of  the  metamorphosis, 
and  the  character  of  its  results,  depend  very  largely 
upon  the  amount  and  kind  of  the  preparation.  The 
whole  business  of  the  larval  stage  is  to  store  up  mate- 
rial and  strength  against  the  crisis.  The  case  of  the 
human  being  is  very  similar.  This  gives  an  inestimable 
value  to  the  otherwise  somewhat  prosaic  and  uninter- 
esting years  of  later  childhood. 

Four  quite  distinct  periods  thus  stand  out  sharply 
before  us  and  claim  our  most  careful  study :  Infancy, 
the  period  of  pure  growth  ;  childhood,  the  period  of  pre- 
paration ;  puberty,  the  period  of  metamorphosis  ;  ado- 
lescence, that  of  the  rise  of  new  powers  and  of  entrance 
into  a  new  world.  Each  of  these  periods  might  well  be 
subdivided  into  shorter  epochs,  every  one  of  which  is 
characterized  by  progress  in  one  or  more  particulars. 

Our  needs  may  be  satisfied  by  a  simpler,  though 
entirely  artificial,  series  of  divisions.  We  may  divide 
the  life  of  the  child  and  youth  into  six  epochs  of  three 
years  each.  The  first  triennium  may  be  called  infancy 
in  lack  of  any  better  name.  The  epoch  between  the 
ages  of  three  and  six  may  be  designated  as  early  child- 
hood, or  the  kindergarten  epoch.  The  years  of  later 
childhood  between  six  and  nine  are  passed  in  the  earlier 
grades   of   school.    The   fourth  and   fifth  triennia   are 


112  GROWTH  AND   EDUCATION 

passed  in  the  grammar  school  or  in  the  earlier  years 
of  the  high  school.  They  include  the  pubertal  years, 
and  one  or  more  preceding  and  following.  Between 
fifteen  and  eighteen  we  have  to  do  with  adolescents, 
though  many  of  the  characteristics  of  this  epoch  become 
more  distinct  at  a  slightly  later  date. 

We  must  now  attempt  to  reconstruct  the  child  on 
the  basis  of  our  analytical  study  of  the  growth  of  the 
different  organs.  At  each  epoch  we  must  discover,  as 
far  as  possible,  his  constitution,  using  the  word  in  its 
literal  derivative  sense.  "We  wish  to  know  the  balance 
of  organs.  We  must  discover  what  organs  are  develop- 
ing most  rapidly  and  which  will  most  profit  by  judi- 
cious exercise.  Our  question  is  :  What  is  the  very  best 
use  we  can  make  of  these  years  to  promote  the  best  and 
fullest  growth  and  development  ? 

If  we  can  discover  this  much,  we  need  not  stop  to 
question  whether  parent,  teacher,  superintendent,  or 
the  public  should  take  the  largest  share  of  the  respon- 
sibility ;  or  where  we  will  unload  the  blame  for  mistakes 
mostly  of  our  own  making.  Each  one  of  us  can  then 
proceed  to  do  the  best  he  can,  every  one  in  his  own 
place  and  according  to  his  own  opportunities,  without 
attempting  to  portion  out  praise  or  blame.  Parents 
and  teachers  are,  or  ought  to  be,  both  sufficiently  inter- 
ested in  the  work. 

.  We  are  to  study  mainly  or  altogether  the  physical 
characteristics  of  these  epochs.  The  mental  aspects  of 
child-study,  important  as  they  are,  lie  outside  of  our 
field.  But  we  may  find  that  the  physical  conditions 
explain,  if  they  do  not  determine,  the  mental  habits 
and  tendencies. 

Whether  our  success  in  reconstructing  the  child  at 


CONSTITUTION  AND  PERIODS  OF  LIFE       113 

every  one  of  these  three-year  periods  be  great  or  small, 
one  fact  is  evident  at  the  outset.  The  school  is  dealing 
with  pupils  in  very  different  stages  of  development. 
The  pupils  of  the  grammar  grades  are  entering  upon 
the  profound  changes  of  the  physical  metamorphosis  of 
puberty,  when  growth  in  height  and  morbidity  will  soon 
culminate.  The  higher  mental  powers  are  just  awaken- 
ing. The  period  is  quite  peculiar  in  its  conditions  and 
needs.  These  facts  should  greatly  modify  all  our  con- 
ceptions of  and  plans  for  education  during  the  whole 
period. 

During  the  later  years  of  the  high  school  course  we 
are  dealing  with  adolescents.  Increase  in  girth  and  lung 
capacity  have  strengthened,  freshened,  and  invigorated 
the  whole  body.  The  blood  is  hot  and  driven  under 
high  pressure.  But  the  pupil  has  not  yet  passed  the 
second  culmination  of  morbidity  which  attends  cessation 
of  growth.  The  mental  powers  are  fresh  and  keen,  and 
interest  in  study  should  be  intense. 

During  the  primary  and  intermediate  years  we  are 
dealing  with  children  in  the  stage  of  preparation  for  the 
pubertal  metamorphosis.  They  resemble  adults  about  as 
closely  as  caterpillars  resemble  butterflies.  Their  chief 
business  is  to  grow  and  to  store  up  material  and  vitality. 
They  have  few  intellectual  interests.  It  is  predominantly 
a  motor  period.  Muscular  exercise  is  essential  to  stimu- 
late digestion,  assimilation,  and  healthy  growth. 

The  curriculum  of  each  grade  must  be  suited  to  the 
stage  of  development  and  needs  of  the  child  or  youth. 
The  needs  of  the  pupils  in  these  three  stages  are  quite 
different.  The  curriculum,  and  the  system  and  mode  of 
education,  must  differ  correspondingly.  The  immediate 
end  and  purpose  of  the  work  in  each  grade  is  peculiar 


114  GROWTH  AND  EDUCATION 

and  unique.  What  would  be  useful  and  beneficent  in  the 
high  school  may  be  harmful  in  the  intermediate  grade, 
and  vice  versa.  In  no  one  of  these  grades  is  the  pupil 
like  the  adult.  In  the  lower  grades  he  differs  so  com- 
pletely that  we  may  easily  fail  altogether  to  understand 
his  constitution,  condition,  and  needs.  The  more  the 
child  differs  from  us,  the  greater  is  our  difficulty  in 
framing  a  course  of  exercise  suited  to  his  stage  of  growth 
or  development.  A  good  curriculum  for  the  child  in  the 
primary  grade  will  probably  appear  entirely  childish  and 
useless  to  the  average  adult  mind.  Until  we  recognize 
these  facts  we  cannot  hope  to  gain  the  cooperation  of 
Nature  in  our  efforts  to  develop  strong  and  efficient 
men  and  women. 


CHAPTER   IX 

THE   FIRST   THREE   YEARS    OF   THE   CHILD'S   LIFE 

This  epoch  is  characterized  by  very  rapid  but  steadily 
decreasing  growth  in  weight  and  height.  The  new-born 
boy  weighs  at  birth  about  3  J  kilos  (7  J  lbs.),  the  girl 
about  3  J  kilos  (7^  lbs.).  The  weight  doubles  during 
the  first  six  months,  and  increases  fourfold  during  the 
first  three  years. 

The  height  of  the  boy  and  girl  is  about  20 1  inches 
(52.5  cm.)  at  birth.  It  increases  somewhat  less  than 
50  per  cent  during  the  first  year,  and  about  75  per  cent 
during  the  first  three  years.  The  girth  of  chest  is  34 
centimeters  (13.4  in.)  or  practically  two  thirds  of  the 
height.  In  the  adult  it  is  little  more  than  one  half  of 
the  height.  The  trunk  is  long,  the  neck  very  short,  and 
the  legs  are  small.  The  large  trunk  affords  room  for 
the  internal  organs,  which  at  this  time  compose  a  very 
large  portion  of  the  weight  of  the  body,  and  are  fur- 
nishing the  material  for  the  rapid  growth. 

The  girth  of  the  head  is  at  birth  equal  to  or  a  little 
greater  than  that  of  the  chest,  35  centimeters  (13  to 
14  in.).  They  remain  practically  equal  for  the  first  two 
years,  but  after  this  time  the  chest  increases  far  more 
rapidly.  The  ratio  of  these  dimensions  is  an  important 
symptom  of  the  vigor  or  weakness  of  the  child.  The 
girth  of  the  chest  at  birth  normally  exceeds  one  half  of 
the  height  by  nine  or  ten  centimeters  (3^  to  4  in.). 
Frobelius  has  shown  that  mortality  is  greater  among 


116  GROWTH  AND  EDUCATION 

children  having  large  hfcads  and  small  chests.    His  re- 
sults are  given  in  the  following  table : 


Class. 

Chest  girth  exceeds 

Head  girth  exceeds 

one  half  height. 

chest  girth. 

Mortality. 

I. 

9-10  cm. 

Less  than  2.5  cm. 

21.0  % 

II. 

6.2     " 

2.8-3.0     " 

42.9  % 

III. 

5.0    " 

4.7    " 

67.5  % 

In  classes  n  and  in  the  weight  of  the  child  is  of 
great  importance,  lighter  children  showing  a  much 
greater  mortality.  Class  in  includes  a  much  larger 
proportion  of  premature  births. 

The  breadth  across  the  shoulders  should  be  about  one 
fourth  of  the  height.  The  forehead  and  cranium  are  very 
large,  the  face  is  small,  the  cavity  of  the  mouth  low.  Dur- 
ing this  epoch  the  intestine  and  liver  are  relatively  large ; 
the  heart  is  small  compared  with  the  diameter  of  the 
arteries,  and  hence  the  blood-pressure  low.  In  the  new- 
born child  the  pulse  is  rapid ;  over  130  to  the  minute 
according  to  Vierordt,1  or  almost  twice  as  great  as  in 
the  adult.  The  number  of  respirations  per  minute  is 
over  fifty  during  the  first  weeks,2  and  thirty-five  to 
forty  during  the  first  three  years.  The  adult  breathes 
sixteen  to  eighteen  times  per  minute.  The  brain  is  very 
large  at  birth  and  continues  to  increase  rapidly  during 
the  whole  epoch  and  the  next. 

The  most  noticeable  and  important  characteristic  of 
the  baby  is  its  small  size.  It  has  about  one  nineteenth 
of  the  weight  and  less  than  one  third  of  the  height  of 
the  adult.  This  means  that  the  surface  of  the  child  is 
large  compared  with  its  weight.  The  organs  whose 
efficiency  depends  mostly  upon  the  area  of  their  organic 
surface,  like  intestine,  lungs,  and  kidneys,  have  there- 
fore a  great  advantage.    It  has  been  reckoned  that  the 

1  Vierordt,  Daten  und  Tabellen,  p.  152.  2  Ibid.  p.  166. 


FIRST  THREE  YEARS  OF  THE  CHILD'S  LIFE    117 

new-born  child  has  two  and  three  fourths  times  as  much 
external  surface  for  the  same  amount  of  mass  or 
weight  as  the  adult.  Thus  for  every  1000  grams 
of  weight  the  child  has  at  birth  812  square  centimeters 
of  surface ;  at  one  year,  575  ;  at  two  years,  533 ;  at 
seven  years,  450  ;  at  ten,  412  ;  at  fourteen,  354  ;  while 
the  adult  at  twenty-five  has  301. x 

Because  of  the  large  amount  of  radiating  surface, 
the  body  of  the  child  loses  heat  far  more  rapidly  than 
that  of  the  adult.  To  make  up  for  this  loss  the  child 
has  to  produce  relatively  far  more.  Thus  each  kilogram 
of  tissue  in  a  child  of  five  months  produces  on  an  aver- 
age nearly  one  and  one  half  times  as  much  heat  as  in 
the  child  of  eighteen  months,  2.2  times  as  much  as 
in  the  child  of  eight  years,  and  3.3  times  as  much  as  in 
the  adult. 

Losing  so  much  heat,  and  having  but  poorly  developed 
meaus  of  regulating,  and  especially  of  quickly  increas- 
ing, the  supply,  the  infant  has  very  little  power  of 
resisting  cold.  Hence  the  great  importance  of  proper 
clothing,  and  the  great  danger  of  exposure.  The  legs 
and  arms  of  the  young  child,  being  very  small,  expose 
relatively  an  especially  large  amount  of  surface,  and  in 
the  ankle  and  wrist  the  great  blood-vessels  lie  very  near 
the  surface.  The  trunk  of  a  child  may  be  in  a  Turkish 
bath  of  flannels  while  its  legs  and  arras  freeze.  This  is 
a  most  fruitful  source  of  mischief.  The  child's  tissues 
are  almost  embryonic,  flabby  and  watery ;  hence  very 
poorly  suited  to  rise  to  any  emergency.  The  adult 
human  body  contains  68.0  per  cent  of  water,  according 
to  Moleschott ;  that  of  the  new-born  74.4  per  cent, 
according  to  Fehling.2  Certainly  the  tissues  of  the  child 

1  Vierordt,  Daten  und  Tabellen,  p.  36.  2  Ibid.  p.  249. 


118  GROWTH  AND  EDUCATION 

are  much  richer  in  water ;  this  diminishes  at  first  very 
rapidly,  later  more  gradually.  The  large  amount  of 
water  favors  the  diffusion  of  nutriment  to  the  tissues, 
and  thus  rapidity  of  growth.  But  it  decreases  the  power 
of  resistance  of  the  organism. 

The  circulation  of  the  blood  is  rapid.  There  is  re- 
latively more  of  it,  and  a  larger  part  of  it  is  in  the 
capillaries.  Each  kilogram  of  tissue  contains  at  birth 
perhaps  twice  as  much  blood  as  in  the  adult. 

For  all  these  reasons  the  loss  of  water  is  rapid. 
Hence  the  importance  of  frequent  baths  of  such  temper- 
ature, and  so  managed,  that  the  child  shall  not  be 
chilled.  Hence  also  the  almost  unquenchable  thirst  of 
the  child,  especially  during  diarrhoea,  or  whenever  the 
loss  of  water  is  in  any  way  abnormally  increased.  The 
watery  tissues  of  the  child,  while  less  resistant,  are  more 
plastic  and  adaptable  ;  are  more  easily  disturbed,  but 
recover  more  quickly. 

We  have  already  noticed  the  large  size  and  rapid 
growth  of  the  infant  brain.  Starting  with  a  weight  of 
about  380  grams,  or  more  than  one  fourth  of  its  mature 
weight,  it  more  than  doubles  this  weight  during  the  first 
year,  and  trebles  it  during  the  epoch,  having  at  three 
years  of  age  almost  seven  ninths  of  its  adult  weight. 

The  nervous  system  is  essential  to  life,  and  at  the 
same  time  very  complex.  Hence  it  is  started  as  early  as 
possible  in  embryonic  life,  and  its  growth  is  forced  to 
the  utmost.  But  however  busily  and  fast  Nature  may 
work,  —  and  here  she  needs  no  spur,  —  she  can  have 
only  a  few  essential  and  fundamental  portions  ready  for 
use  at  birth.  The  remaining  portions  are  in  a  stage  of 
pure  growth,  and  will  be  gradually  matured  through 
childhood  and  adolescence. 


FIRST  THREE  YEARS  OF  THE  CHILD'S  LIFE     119 

The  spinal  marrow  with  its  centres  for  reflex  action 
is  capable  of  performing  a  certain  amount  of  work. 
The  cerebellum,  or  small  brain,  will  soon  be  called  upon 
to  coordinate  the  movements  of  the  muscles  of  the  legs 
as  the  child  learns  to  walk.  The  sensory  centres  of  the 
cerebrum,  or  large  brain,  begin  to  function  very  early. 
The  baby  sees,  hears,  tastes,  and  smells  immediately  or 
very  soon  after  birth.  The  motor  centres,  controlling 
the  heavier  muscles  of  trunk,  shoulder,  and  thigh,  are 
gradually  maturing  during  this  epoch.  If  all  these 
essential  portions  can  be  brought  to  a  fair  degree  of 
growth,  development,  and  efficiency,  during  the  brief 
space  of  three  or  even  six  years,  it  is  all  that  can  be 
possibly  demanded.  But  these  comparatively  mature 
centres  form  at  birth  only  a  small  part  of  the  cerebrum. 
The  rest  of  it  is  in  a  very  immature,  almost  embryonic 
condition. 

The  chief  business  of  the  baby,  and  of  the  child  as 
well,  is  evidently  growth.  The  importance  of  growth 
has  already  been  considered.  During  this  and  the  next 
epoch  all  work  is  of  importance  mainly  as  it  fosters 
growth  or  development.  If  growth  is  the  chief  busi- 
ness, material  for  growth  is  the  greategtjneed.  A  large 
amount  of  food  must  be  provided,  digested,  and  assimi- 
lated. The  alimentary  canal  of  a  baby  is  relatively  long 
and  has  a  large  digestive  and  absorptive  surface.  Ac- 
cording to  Uffelmann,  a  child  two  years  old  requires 
about  two  fifths  as  much  albumin,  three  fifths  as  much 
fat,  and  somewhat  more  than  one  fifth  as  much  hydro- 
carbons as  the  adult.1  Yet  it  has  attained  less  than  one 
fifth  of  the  adult  weight.  To  digest  and  absorb  so  large 
an  amount  of  material  throws  a  heavy  load  upon  the 

1  Uffelmann,  Hygiene,  pp.  703  and  263. 


120  GROWTH  AND  EDUCATION 

immature  digestive  system.  Hence  any  needless  strain 
should  be  carefully  avoided,  and  all  conditions  should  be 
made  as  favorable  as  possible.  Vierordt  calls  attention 
to  the  fact  that  the  mucous  membrane  which  lines  the 
digestive  tract  of  the  infant  is  richer  in  blood  and 
incomparably  more  sensitive,  more  easily  injured,  than 
at  a  later  age.  He  continues :  "  The  nourishment  in 
infancy  differs  in  essential  points  from  that  of  later  life. 
It  must  be  very  fluid.  Thicker,  gruel-like  foods  are  at 
first  digested  with  greater  difficulty.  It  must  have  a 
constant  temperature  corresponding  to  that  of  the  body. 
The  organism  cannot  bear  great  variations  in  temper- 
ature. It  must  satisfy  the  great  needs  of  metabolism 
and  growth ;  and  contain  suitable  amounts  of  the  essen- 
tial elements,  including  salts  and  water.  It  is  of  special 
importance  that  it  should  be  suited  to  the  digestive 
powers  of  the  infant.  Recipes  concerning  artificial 
foods  which  satisfy  the  needs  of  the  organism  only 
quantitatively,  but  have  less  regard  to  quality,  should 
be  carefully  refused  as  unnatural." 

The  muscular  and  nervous  systems,  which  are  grow- 
ing most  rapidly,  demand  large  amounts  of  albumin- 
oids. The  various  forms  of  starches  and  sugars,  which 
the  adult  craves  and  needs,  are  neither  needed  nor 
craved  in  infancy.  They  merely  throw  a  heavier  bur- 
den upon  a  sensitive  and  already  overloaded  digestive 
system.  Inorganic  salts  are  needed  in  large  quantities 
to  build  up  the  bones  of  the  skeleton.  The  best  food  for 
the  baby  wherever  possible  is  its  own  mother's  milk. 
The  mortality  of  such  children  is  far  less  than  that  of 
those  artificially  nourished.1  In  Sweden  and  Norway, 
where  the  children  are  almost  all  thus  nourished,  the 

1  Uffelmann,  Hygiene,  p.  54. 


FIRST  THREE  YEARS  OF  THE  CHILD'S  LIFE    121 

mortality  during  the  first  year  was  only  from  10  to 
12  per  cent.  In  Wurtemberg  one  third  of  the  children 
are  breast-fed.  Their  mortality  was  only  13.5.  per  cent; 
that  of  the  artificially  nourished  children  was  42  per 
cent.  In  Berlin,  where  a  little  less  than  one  third  of  the 
children  are  breast-fed,  the  average  mortality  for  the 
city  was  about  30  per  cent  for  the  first  year.  Of  course 
there  are  many  cases  where  the  mother  cannot  nurse 
the  child.  She  may  have  insufficient  milk  and  of  poor 
quality.  This  is  frequently  the  case  where  the  mother 
is  anaemic  or  weak  or  highly  nervous. 

When  recourse  is  had  to  artificial  foods  we  must  bear 
in  mind  that  some  of  them  tend  to  produce  fat  rather 
than  solid  flesh  and  bone.  The  baby  appears  to  be  well 
nourished,  his  weight  increases  normally,  but  he  does 
not  really  thrive.  Here  even  the  scales  fail  to  detect 
the  danger,  and  only  the  keen  eye  of  the  physician  or 
experienced  nurse  avails. 

Children  who  have  been  poorly  nourished  in  infancy 
may  recover  and  regain  their  losses  later.  But  fre- 
quently this  is  not  the  case.  Of  children  born  in  the 
famine  years  in  Europe,  in  1816  and  1817,  an  unusu- 
ally large  number  proved  unfit  for  military  service. 

According  to  Uffelmann,  the  baby  during  the  first  year 
of  life,  after  the  first  fortnight,  takes  about  one  seventh 
of  its  own  weight  of  milk  daily.1  If  it  is  fed  cow's  milk 
it  takes  more,  and  apparently  digests  it  less  completely. 
Vomiting  at  this  time,  unless  frequent  or  continuous,  is 
not  alarming.  The  position  of  the  stomach  and  the  weak- 
ness of  the  muscles  closing  its  upper  end  make  this  act 
far  easier  and  less  significant  than  in  the  adult. 

After  the  baby  is  weaned  the  range  of  his  diet  widens 

1  Uffelmann,  Hygiene,  p.  686. 


122  GROWTH   AND   EDUCATION 

very  gradually.  The  food  must  still  be  rich  in  albumin- 
oids and  must  remain  largely  fluid.  Still  the  stomach  is 
incapable  of  thoroughly  digesting  the  thick-walled  cells 
of  most  vegetable  foods.  The  way  for  solid  foods  must 
be  paved  gradually.  During  even  the  next  epoch  as  well, 
the  child  is  still  solving  the  problem  of  digesting  and 
assimilating  the  largest  possible  amount  of  food  with 
a  digestive  system  which  is  still  sensitive  and  easily  dis- 
ordered. 

But  a  liberal  supply  of  nourishment  is  only  the  first 
condition  of  healthy  growth.  Second  is  the  need  of 
plenty  of  oxygen,  of  pure  air.  The  new-born  baby 
breathes  about  thirty-five  times  a  minute,  the  adult 
twelve  to  sixteen.  The  figures  differ  greatly  here.1 
There  is  no  doubt  that  the  child  uses  relatively  far  more 
oxygen  than  the  adult,  and  produces  far  more  carbon 
dioxide.2  The  child  is  far  more  sensitive  than  the  adult 
to  impure  or  damp  air.  Probably  the  excessive  dryness 
of  our  furnace-heated  houses  is  almost  equally  deleteri- 
ous. It  is  a  good  deal  to  expect  of  a  baby  that  he  will 
thrive  in  an  atmosphere  where  fairly  tough  plants  die. 
Hence  the  value  of  outdoor  life  for  the  child.  Dr. 
Holt  tells  us  that  almost  the  only  explanation  of  the 
health  of  many  country  children  who  live  on  unwisely 
selected  and  badly  prepared  food  is  the  abundant  fresh 
air  in  which  they  live. 

The  third  need  of  every  growing  organism  is  light 
and  sunshine.  Animals  produce  from  a  twelfth  to  one 
fourth  more  carbonic  acid  in  light  than  in  darkness.3 
Their  temperature  is  often  perceptibly  higher.     Both 

1  Percy,  First  Three   Years  of  Childhood,  pp.  346,  353;   Vierordt, 
Daten  und  Tabellen,  p.  165.  2  Vierordt,  Daten,  pp.  176,  24,  352. 

3  Uffelmami,  Hygiene,  p.  21. 


FIRST  THREE  YEARS  OF  THE  CHILD'S  LIFE    123 

these  symptoms  suggest  greater  vigor.  The  effect  of 
a  sunshiny  exposure  on  the  dampness  of  the  air  and  on 
the  development  of  germs  is  also  of  great  importance. 
Hence  the  nursery  should  always  be  the  best  room  in 
the  house  ;  large,  sunny,  and  with  large  windows.  After 
the  baby  has  outgrown  his  first  shyness  of  light,  the 
more  sunshine  in  the  room  the  better.  The  temperature 
of  the  room  is  very  important.  Every  plant  has  its  own 
special  temperature  which  is  necessary  for  its  most 
rapid  growth.  This  "  optimum  temperature "  differs, 
of  course,  in  different  plants.  Wherever  man  may  have 
first  originated,  the  best  temperature  and  climate  for 
the  baby  is  surely  not  that  of  the  Desert  of  Sahara.  Dr. 
Holt  again  reminds  us  that  the  nursery  is  almost  al- 
ways kept  too  hot  from  fear  that  the  baby  will  "  catch 
cold."  Here  the  thermometer  is  a  much  safer  guide 
than  the  feeling  that  the  temperature  of  the  room,  and 
of  the  bath  also,  is  "  about  right." 

Next  only  to  food,  air,  and  light,  as  stimuli  to  growth, 
we  must  reckon  sleep.  This  is  especially  necessary  dur- 
ing periods  of  rapid  growth,  because  of  the  rapid  meta- 
bolism and  the  small  power  of  endurance.  Even  when 
a  year  old,  a  baby  sleeps  longer  than  it  remains  awake. 
Most  authorities  tell  us  that  ten  or  eleven  hours'  sleep 
are  none  too  many  for  a  child  even  six  to  ten  years 
old. 

Thus  far  we  have  considered  the  child  almost  as  a 
mere  vegetable.  We  have  attempted  to  surround  him 
with  suitable  conditions,  and  then  to  let  him  grow  of 
himself.  But  the  baby  is  more  than  a  vegetable,  it  has 
a  nervous  and  a  muscular  system.  These  also  are  grow- 
ing of  themselves,  almost  like  vegetables.  But  they 
crave  and  need  suitable  exercise. 


124  GROWTH   AND   EDUCATION 

The  brain  is  growing  with  great  rapidity.  The  whole 
nervous  system  is  sensitive  and  irritable.  The  baby 
reacts  very  strongly  to  slight  stimuli.  Irritation  of  the 
digestive  system  may  produce  convulsions.  Hence  for 
the  growth  of  this  system  quiet,  rest,  and  peace  are 
more  important  than  artificial  stimuli.  Sometimes  a 
tired  and  irritable  baby  is  rested  and  put  to  sleep  more 
quickly  by  being  allowed  to  lie  still  than  by  any  churn- 
ing process,  however  vigorously  applied.  The  "  den  dro- 
psy choses  "  of  the  child  are  hardly  so  fixed  and  dominant 
that  he  can  be  benefited  by  being  tossed  up  to  the  ceiling. 

Yet  even  here  we  may  rush  from  one  extreme  to 
another.  It  has  been  found  that  babies  often  do  not 
thrive  in  hospitals  which  are  most  carefully  and  hygien- 
ically  built  and  managed.  The  explanation  has  been 
suggested  that  the  baby  lay  too  long,  and  lacked  the 
massage  of  the  tending  of  the  mother  or  nurse.  The 
licking,  we  might  almost  call  it  kneading,  of  the  young 
kitten  by  the  mother,  suggests  that  a  certain  amount  of 
this  massage  may  be  exceedingly  beneficial  and  perhaps 
essential. 

Certain  parts  of  the  muscular  system  begin  to  crave 
real  exercise  earlier  than  we  suspect.  Writhing,  wrig- 
gling, kicking,  swinging  its  arms,  reaching,  and  grasp- 
ing, are  all  exercises  which  the  baby  keenly  enjoys. 
Soon  it  begins  to  creep,  and  then  to  walk.  All  these 
exercises  conduce  to  health  and  growth.  "A  good 
creeper  is  a  good  teether." 

Mence  from  the  start  the  baby  should  be  allowed  or 
encouraged  to  indulge  in  such  exercise.  Its  clothing 
should  not  hamper  movement,  much  less  check  respira- 
tion or  circulation.  It  should  be  allowed  its  time  of 
free  movements  on  a  pile  of  rugs  on  the  floor,  if  safe 


FIRST  THREE  YEARS  OF  THE  CHILD'S  LIFE    125 

from  drafts ;  or  on  the  bed,  where  it  can  kick  and 
cavort  all  it  will.  The  growing  muscles  are  craving 
exercise,  and  the  exercise  stimulates  growth  not  only 
of  the  muscles  but  of  the  nervous  system  as  well. 

We  may  now  consider  the  mortality  of  infancy. 

Of  1000  children  born  alive  there  die  during  the 
first  year  :  in  Jemtland  (Sweden),  90  ;  in  Norway,  104  ; 
in  Scotland,  119  ;  in  Belgium,  155  ;  in  England,  167  ; 
in  France,  173 ;  in  Italy,  232  ;  in  Prussia,  240 ;  in 
Austria,  251  ;  in  Bavaria,  311 ;  in  Wiirtemberg,  360. 
Uffelmann's  book,  from  which  these  figures  are  taken, 
appeared  in  1889.  Eross  found  from  a  study  of  sta- 
tistics of  European  cities  that  nearly  ten  per  cent  of  all 
children  died  during  the  first  four  weeks  after  birth ; 
and  that  of  these  deaths  more  than  one  half  were  due 
to  congenital  debility.  Pneumonia  was  also  exceed- 
ingly common.  The  mortality  rates  of  infants  decrease 
steadily  with  increasing  age.  The  highest  death-rate  \ 
falls  in  the  first  week,  month,  and  year. 

Greater  mortality  in  cities  is  universally  recognized. 
Oesterlen  states  that  in  seven  European  cities,  of  every 
100  born  there  die  in  the  first  five  years  of  life  33.6 
per  cent ;  in  the  country,  27.28  per  cent.  In  England, 
in  cities  of  more  than  20,000  inhabitants,  51.39  per 
cent  die  during  the  first  ten  years ;  in  smaller  cities, 
46.79  per  cent ;  in  the  country,  35.4  per  cent.  In  great 
industrial  cities  the  mortality  of  children  is  very  excess- 
-ive.  In  Manchester,  Birmingham,  and  Liverpool  25 
per  cent  of  all  children  born  alive  die  during  the  first 
year.  In  St.  Olaves,  36  per  cent ;  in  Chemnitz,  48  per 
cent.    This  results  from  the  high  birth-rate,  allowing 

1  Uffelmann,  Hygiene,  p.  678. 


126  GROWTH  AND  EDUCATION 

less  care  for  each  child,  from  poor  nourishment,  over- 
crowding, and  unsanitary  surroundings. 

The  prosperity  of  the  family  is  important.  Clay 
reckoned  for  England  that  of  100  infants  born  alive 
there  would  survive  after  the  first  year :  of  the  highest 
classes,  90  ;  of  tradespeople,  79  ;  of  laborers,  68.  After 
the  tenth  year  the  figure  for  the  three  classes  would  be 
81,  56,  and  38  respectively. 

The  high  death-rate  in  the  overcrowded  portions  of 
our  cities  results  therefore  from  a  combination  of  factors 
besides  those  already  mentioned.  Some  of  these  are 
the  weak  constitution  of  the  parents,  the  work  of  the 
mother  during  pregnancy  and  while  caring  for  the 
infant,  insufficient  and  unsuitable  nourishment,  lack  of 
proper  medical  attendance,  prevalence  of  zymotic  dis- 
eases. 

Zymotic  diseases  are  responsible  for  nearly  20  per 
cent  of  infant  mortality.  These  are  rare  in  infants  of  the 
better  classes  because  of  the  isolation  furnished  by  the 
home.  But  in  the  crowded  rooms  of  the  poorer  class 
they  are  exceedingly  dangerous.  About  35  per  cent  of 
all  deaths  from  zymotic  diseases  occur  under  the  age  of 
one  year,  and  no  fewer  than  76  per  cent  under  the  age 
of  five  years.  The  older  child  resists  far  better  than  the 
younger.  Of  1000  cases  at  each  age  of  scarlet  fever 
392  died  in  the  first  year,  and  only  130  in  the  fifth. 

Whooping-cough  is  very  dangerous  during  the  first 
year.  Croup  and  diphtheria  are  often  confounded  ;  but 
croup  is  more  frequent  in  the  second  year,  and  diphtheria 
during  the  fourth.  True  infantile  diarrhoea  is  an  ex- 
ceedingly frequent  and  dangerous  disease  among  the 
children  of  the  poorer  classes,  arising  from  a  variety 
of  causes,  but  mostly  from  bad  feeding.    The  great 


FIRST  THREE  YEARS  OF  THE  CHILD'S  LIFE    127 

danger  of  teething  is  the  liability  to  diarrhoea.  The 
teething  in  itself  seems  to  be  only  an  irritation  weaken- 
ing the  child,  and  thus  rendering  him  less  resistant  to 
digestive  disorders  likely  to  attack  him  at  this  age. 

Uffelmann  says :  New-born  infants  suffer  largely 
from  general  weakness  and  from  digestive  disorders. 
During  the  remaining  eleven  months  of  the  first  year 
they  are  liable  especially  to  digestive  disorders,  second  to 
respiratory  and  nervous  affections.  Infectious  diseases 
are  relatively  rare.  From  the  second  to  the  sixth  years, 
inclusive,  they  suffer  especially  from  respiratory  affec- 
tions and  from  infectious  diseases. 

We  have  seen  that  the  constitution  of  the  infant  is  an 
hereditary  endowment  and  weak  or  strong  accordingly. 
The  hereditary  constitution  is  usually  healthy  actually 
or  potentially.  The  two  or  three  generations  immedi- 
ately preceding  us  may  have  some  slight  tendencies 
toward  disease,  but  behind  them  there  must  have  been 
a  long  series  of  sturdy  ancestors,  or  we  would  not  be 
here.  "Madam,"  said  the  shrewd  country  doctor, 
"  don't  forget  that  that  baby  was  made  all  right.  Don't 
you  go  and  spoil  it."  Yet  this  is  only  one  half  of  the 
truth,  and  the  other  half  demands  at  least  equal  empha- 
sis.  Every  one  has  his  weakest  spot. 

If  the  children  are  to  be  healthy,  we  must  begin  with 
the  parents.  They  should  bear  in  mind  that  if  they  are 
feeble  or  intemperate,  if  they  have  wasted  their  vital 
powers  in  the  pursuit  of  pleasure,  wealth  or  fame,  through 
indulgence,  or  excess  of  hard  labor,  especially  of  mental 
and  sedentary  work,  they  cannot  expect  to  have  entirely 
sound  and  healthy  children.  "  Our  constitution  is  an 
entailed  estate  which  must  pass  to  our  heirs  with  all  its 
worth  and  incumbrances." 


128  GROWTH  AND  EDUCATION 

But  we  are  liable  to  waste  a  great  deal  of  valuable 
time  in  discussing  and  mourning  over  bad  hereditary 
tendencies,  which  can  no  longer  be  avoided,  when  we 
ought  to  turn  our  attention  to  early  environment,  which 
can  do  more  than  we  yet  suspect  to  eradicate  or  suppress 
the  worst  hereditary  tendencies. 

One  of  our  worst  dangers,  one  against  which  every  child 
should  be  fortified,  and  against  which  he  can  be  strength- 
ened almost  from  the  day  of  his  birth,  is  nervous  insta- 
bility. The  child  is  weak  in  self-control,  lacking  in 
inhibitory  power.  It  is  governed  or  led  by,  or  continu- 
ally responds  to,  conditions  in  its  surroundings.  It  is 
imitative  almost  as  soon  as  it  can  notice.  It  is  remark- 
ably amenable  to  suggestion,  almost  as  much  so  as  the 
hypnotized  patient.  In  one  word,  express  it  as  you  will, 
it  is  exceedingly  impressible.  Every  impression  on  the 
nervous  system  modifies  its  growth  and  influences  its 
mature  condition.  Hence  the  surroundings  of  the  infant 
go  far  to  determine  the  adult  character.  A  nervous  or 
fidgety  nurse  or  parent,  abrupt  or  too  quick  in  her  mo- 
tions, friends  who  wish  to  amuse  the  baby  by  abusing 
him,  any  or  all  together  can  work  permanent  harm  far 
greater  than  we  suspect.  Not  only  the  overt  acts  but 
even  t\\e  mental  condition  of  the  attendant  are  reflected 
day  after  day  and  month  after  month  by  the  child. 
Thus  his  nervous  system  becomes  calm  and  steady,  or 
weak,  unstable,  and  irritable.  And  this  condition  rapidly 
becomes  fixed  and  permanent. 


THE  KINDERGARTEN  PERIOD  133 

This  valuable  nutriment  will  benefit  in  moderate  quan- 
tities, and  when  it  will  not  destroy  the  appetite  for  other 
kinds  of  food.  If  given  a  moderate  quantity  of  sweets 
each  day  he  will  be  less  likely  to  overindulge  on  holi- 
days spent  with  his  grandmother.  The  craving  for  ripe 
and  sound  fruit  is  equally  natural  and  healthy.  The 
thirst  of  the  child  is  still  uncontrollable  and  unabated. 
The  larger  amount  of  water  aids  the  diffusion  of  nutri- 
ment, the  removal  of  waste,  and  is  generally  beneficial. 
The  baby  was  satisfied  with  one  kind  and  form  of  food  ; 
the  child  begins  to  crave  variety. 

The  child  needs  food  at  more  frequent  intervals  than 
the  adult.  The  supply  eaten  at  one  meal  is  soon  ex- 
hausted if  easily  digestible  as  it  should  be.  Naturally 
the  child  runs  to  the  pantry  in  the  middle  of  the  morn- 
ing and  again  in  the  afternoon.  The  slice  of  bread  and 
butter  with  a  sprinkling  of  sugar  will  "  stay  the  empty 
stomach,"  and  will  increase,  rather  than  diminish,  the 
appetite  for  the  next  meal.  This  mid-morning  lunch 
may  well  be  continued  through  the  years  of  school  life. 
The  appetite  of  the  average  child  is  healthy  and  usually 
fully  as  safe  a  guide  as  the  opinions  and  prejudices,  not 
to  say  fads,  of  his  elders.  He  has  his  own  constitution, 
organization,  and  needs,  and  they  are  not  as  ours.  At 
least  we  might  try  the  experiment  of  sometimes  giving 
him  the  benefit  of  the  doubt. 

The  years  from  three  to  six  are  usually  compara- 
tively free  from  sickness.  Still  the  delicate  linings  of 
the  digestive  and  respiratory  organs  are  the  most  vul- 
nerable points  of  the  body.  The  young  child  has  suc- 
cessfully passed  Nature's  first  examination  and  test, 
and  has  been  found  fit  to  enter  upon  life.  The  second 
great  test  does  not   come   until  a  decade  later.    The 


134  GROWTH  AND   EDUCATION 

young  child  at  home  is  less  likely  to  contract  conta- 
gious diseases  than  during  school  life.  These  are  also 
less  dangerous  than  in  infancy,  for  the  child  has  far 
greater  power  of  resistance. 

(  Not  only  is  sickness  becoming  rarer,  but  the  death- 
rate  is  rapidly  decreasing.  Thus  Hartwell  gives  for 
Boston  a  rate  of  37.58  per  thousand  living  in  the  third 
year  of  life.  In  the  fourth  year  it  has  fallen  to  25.66, 
a  decrease  of  33  per  cent.  In  the  sixth  year  it  has  de- 
creased to  15.65.  This  is  still  about  four  times  as  great 
as  it  will  be  in  the  twelfth  year,  but  not  much  more 
than  one  eighth  of  what  it  was  even  in  the  second  year 
of  life.  The  prospects  of  the  child  of  three  or  four  are 
very  good. 

Still  hereditary  or  pmTorpji|j^1jtYfinknpsg  ™rty  hpjjqy 
Jtselfjiujdflg-JJie^e— years.  Scrofula,  rachitis,  anemia, 
occurring  here,  to  say  nothing  of  chronic  delicacy  or 
weakness,  are  signs  that  Nature  has  allowed  the  child 
to  go  on  only  "  conditioned  "  and  on  probation,  as  it 
were.  She  will  give  it  a  fair  trial  before  condemning 
it.  It  is  the  duty  of  the  parent  to  see  that  these  con- 
ditions and  deficiencies  are  "  made  up  "  and  removed. 
This  and  the  following  epoch  are  a  golden  season  for 
insuring  a  healthy  growth  and  development.  Now  is  the 
time  for  hygiene  and  preventive  medicine.  The  reme- 
dies  are  mostly  f ew  and  sjmple,  and  the  best  tonjc  is 
plenty  of  fresh  air  and  sleep. 

/ '  The  kindergarten  epoch  is  predominantly  sensory, 
but  even  at  this  age  the  child  enjoys  motion.  It  runs, 
and  will  soon  begin  to  climb.  It  is  less  restless,  and 
more  easHyJint^stftr]  in  quiet  games  than  during-4he 
two  following  epochs.  But  every  desire  to  run  and 
^  jump  should  be  encouraged,  and  the  tendency  to  quiet- 


THE   KINDERGARTEN   PERIOD  135 

ness  should  not  lead  us  to  encourage  this  as  the  chief 
virtue.  The  clothing,  especially  of  the  girl,  is  often 
ill-suited  to  its  purpose,  which  is  to  insure  protection 
against  cold,  especially  in  the  legs  and  arms,  and  still 
to  allow  the  greatest  freedom  of  motion. 

The  kindergarten  has  proved  itself  to  be  an  almost 
ideal  school  for  this  epoch.  Its  success  is  due  very 
largely  to  the  fact  that,  in  general,  it  takes  children  as 
it  finds  them,  and  does  not  try  to  force  upon  them 
methods  of  thought  and  action  suited  only  to  the  adult. 
A  very  careful  study  of  the  kindergarten  and  the  child 
is  given  by  Burk  in  his  "  Kindergarten  Problem."  l  He 
finds  that  the  plays  of  this  period  can  be  divided  into 
three  classes.  The  first  class  includes  Plays  of  Physical 
Action,  —  running,  kicking,  sliding,  climbing,  throw- 
ing, etc.  Balls  and  driving-reins  were  the  most  popular 
toys.  "  These  games  give  free  exercise,  but  there  is 
a  decided  lack  of  games  of  competition  or  of  force,  also 
of  games  involving  fine  accuracy  or  skill.  They  involve 
mainly  the  fundamental  muscles  and  movements,  but 
afford  a  great  variety  of  exercise."  Burk  wisely  urges 
that  more  of  the  simplest  toys  should  be  introduced  to 
stimulate  the  play  interest  and  call  forth  its  expres- 
sion. 

Under  the  second  class  of  Representative  Plays  oc- 
cur :  being  an  animal,  making  things,  and  representing 
adult  occupations.  The  child  imitates  the  adult  or  some 
animal.  Here  the  sand-pile  furnishes  endless  opportun- 
ities. Dolls  and  housekeeping  begin.  The  weakness  of 
the  child's  constructive  powers  is  more  than  compen- 
sated by  his  imagination.  "  The  representative  plays  of 
this  epoch  may  be  characterized  by  their  fragmentary 

1  Burk,  The  Study  of  the  Kindergarten  Problem. 


136  GROWTH  AND   EDUCATION 

nature,  that  is,  their  selection  of  a  few  features ;  their 
simplicity  as  shown  in  the  relation  of  those  playing ;  and 
their  emphasis  of  the  element  of  action." 

The  third  class,  Traditional  Plays,  like  London 
Bridge,  Puss  in  a  corner,  tag,  etc.,  were  less  frequently 
employed.  These  seem  to  demand  more  cooperation  and 
organization  than  the  child  is  capable  or  fond  of  show- 
ing. They  become  popular  at  a  somewhat  later  stage. 
Miniature  gardens,  where  the  child  can  plant,  weed, 
and  dig,  seem  to  have  been  exceedingly  successful  and 
popular  in  some  localities. 

President  Hall's  monograph  on  the  "  Contents  of 
Children's  Minds " *  opened  our  eyes  to  a  frequent 
defect  of  training  during  this  epoch.  Of  the  children 
tested  in  Boston  over  three  fifths  had  apparently  never 
seen  a  crow,  an  ant,  a  squirrel,  or  a  robin.  Over  four 
fifths  did  not  know  a  pine,  an  oak,  an  elm,  or  a  maple. 
Less  than  one  fourth  were  ignorant  of  butterfly,  hen, 
or  cow  ;  but  one  half  did  not  know  about  frogs  or  bees. 
The  ignorance  of  the  children  of  Kansas  City  was  far 
less  pronounced  and  painful,  though  bad  enough. 

The  sensory  organs  are  the  mouths  of  the  child's 
mind.  Through  them  the  material  is  taken  in  which 
the  mind  digests  and  assimilates,  and  by  whose  digestion 
it  grows  and  develops.  If  the  senses  are  allowed  to 
remain  or  become  dull,  the  prospect  or  possibility  of 
the  highest  and  most  active  intelligence  is  decreased  or 
destroyed  at  the  very  outset.  The  really  efficient  man 
is  always  a  wide,  keen,  and  quick  observer.  The 
inventor  who  has  observed  the  need  of  the  community 
has  already  solved  one  half  of  the  problem  of  his  inven- 

1  Hall's  "  Contents  of  Children's  Minds  on  Entering  School,"  Ped. 
Sem.  vol.  i. 


THE   KINDERGARTEN  PERIOD  137 

tion.  These  powers  must  be  developed  now,  if  at  all. 
Hence  their  use  and  exercise  should  be  encouraged  in 
every  possible  way. 

The  observation  of,  and  interest  in,  natural  objects 
should  become  a  fixed  habit.  The  child  who  has  never 
had  his  eyes  thoroughly  trained  to  observe  and  examine 
Nature  will  never  love  her  as  he  should.  All  his  later  life 
he  will  wander  blind  through  a  world  teeming  with 
beauties  and  miracles.  When  we  fail  to  encourage 
sensory  development  we  rob  the  child  of  his  birthright. 

The  fibres  of  the  association  areas  in  the  brain  seem 
to  connect  different  sensory  and  motor  centres.  These 
connecting  fibres  are  the  seat  of  the  highest  powers  of 
the  mind.  At  least,  this  is  the  most  probable  theory 
at  the  present  time.  The  development  of  these  highest 
centres  proceeds  from  and  depends  upon  that  of  the 
sensory  and  motor  areas  which  they  connect.  Here  is 
still  another  reason  for  thinking  that  the  intelligence 
of  the  individual  is  best  insured  and  increased  by  the 
fullest  possible  use  of  the  sensory  areas  now,  and  of 
the  motor  areas  when  these  in  their  turn  begin  to  crave 
exercise. 

The  climate  of  our  Northern  States  is  one  of  the  great- 
est hindrances  to  the  complete  success  of  the  kinder- 
garten. Ideally  the  child  should  be  trained  in  the  open 
air  and  sunshine  in  free  and  constant  contact  with 
Nature.  This  is  possible  in  our  rigorous  climate  only 
during  late  spring  and  summer  and  early  fall.  Every 
child  ought  to  have  at  least  one  pair  of  grandparents 
living  on  a  farm  in  the  hills  or  by  the  sea,  and  should 
spend  the  summer,  and  more  if  possible,  with  them.  No 
child  should  be  doomed  to  life  in  the  city  for  the 
whole  year.    He  should  have  a  respite.    We  must  at 


138  GROWTH  AND   EDUCATION 

least  see  to  it  that  if  the  child  must  spend  most  of  its 
time  indoors,  the  recesses  shall  be  frequent  and  long, 
the  rooms  light,  airy,  and  well  ventilated.  Most  adults 
have  lost  the  power  of  recognizing  whether  the  air  in 
a  well- warmed  room  is  fit  to  breathe  or  not.  If  the  child 
cannot  go  to  the  woods,  we  must  bring  the  spoils  of  the 
woods  to  him.  Yet  this  is  but  a  poor  substitute  for  the 
real  opportunity. 

Finally  the  teacher  of  the  kindergarten  may  well  be 
on  her  guard  that  mysticism  or  love  of  system,  the  adult 
aesthetic  sense  for  pleasing  games  in  group  or  circle, 
does  not  rob  the  child  of  its  inalienable  right  to  indi- 
vidual freedom  of  action  and  movement,  or  destroy  its 
resourcefulness,  ingenuity,  and  power  of  taking  the 
initiative.  The  rhythmic  waving  of  tiny  hands  is  very 
beautiful.  But  from  the  hygienic  standpoint  the  use  of  the 
heavy  fundamental  muscles,  while  apparently  somewhat 
rough,  crude,  and  barbarous,  is  far  more  profitable. 
"  This  ought  ye  to  do,  and  not  to  leave  the  other  undone.', 
The  child  is  not  yet  saint  or  sage,  gentleman  or  lady. 
He  had  best  act  and  move  as  a  healthy,  natural  child. 


1 


7. 


CHAPTER   XI 

THE   CHILD   ENTERING   SCHOOL 

During  this  third  epoch  the  child  is  a  strange  and 
interesting  being,  whose  organs  are  at  widely  different 
stages  of  growth  or  development.  At  six  there  is  but 
little  difference  between  the  sexes,  though  the  girl 
already  begins  to  show  signs  of  the  precocity  which  will 
characterize  her  future  development.  The  child  at  six 
weighs  about  twenty  kilograms  (45  lbs.)  ;  at  nine  a 
little  less  than  twenty-seven  kilograms  (60  lbs.).  The 
girl  is  a  little  lighter  than  the  boy.  The  gain  during 
the  epoch  is  about  thirty-one  per  cent,  or  two  thirds 
of  that  during  the  last  epoch.  The  weight  at  six  is 
about  one  third  of  that  of  the  adult. 

The  height  of  the  boy  at  six  is  one  hundred  and 
twelve  centimeters  (44  in.)  ;  at  nine  it  is  one  hundred 
and  twenty-seven  centimeters  (50  in.).  The  increase 
during  the  epoch  is  somewhat  over  thirteen  per  cent 
for  both  boys  and  girls,  a  little  more  than  one  half  of 
the  percentile  increase  of  the  preceding  triennium. 

The  ratio  of  sitting  to  standing  height  is  diminish- 
ing. The  increase  of  sitting-height  is  about  nine  per 
cent.  According  to  Zeising,1  the  distance  from  hip  to 
armpit  increases  only  about  three  per  cent.  Increase 
of  chest-girth  is  slight,  about  two  thirds  as  rapid  as 
that  of  standing-height.  The  chest-girth  at  nine  is  but 
little  more  than  one  half  of  the  standing-height,  and 

1  Vierordt,  Daten  und  Tabellen,  p.  18.  y^     c 

•  ? 


140  GROWTH  AND   EDUCATION 

the  ratio  is  still  falling.  The  measurements  of  muscular 
girths  of  arm  and  leg  were  taken  by  different  observers 
from  different  groups  of  individuals,  and  are  hardly 
comparable.  Hence  their  increase  at  this  time  is  still 
uncertain. 

If  all  organs  were  equally  developed,  each  would 
have  attained  one  third  of  its  adult  weight.  This  is  not 
the  case.  The  digestive  system  is  still  in  advance  of  all 
the  other  organs.  Liver  and  kidneys  are  still  relatively 
large,  but  are  fast  sinking  to  their  adult  proportions. 
The  size  of  these  vegetative  organs  reminds  us  that  we 
still  have  to  do  with  an  organism  which  retains  strongly 
marked  infantile  conditions  and  characters,  whose  chief 
business  is  even  yet  growth  fully  as  much  as  develop- 
ment. The  lungs  are  small,  but  the  greater  ratio  of 
surface  to  mass,  and  the  more  rapid  breathing  may 
compensate  somewhat  for  their  lack  of  size. 

During  this  epoch  the  heart  is  at  a  minimum.  It 
has  hardly  more  than  one  fourth  of  its  adult  weight, 
and  has  to  force  the  blood  over  a  body  which  has  two 
thirds  of  its  adult  height.  This  relative  decrease  in 
weight  and  power  comes  at  a  time  when  the  muscles 
ar.e  beginning  to  crave  much  exercise.  This  makes  far 
greater  demands  upon  the  heart  than  mere  rapid  growth 
could  cause.  Christopher  has  already  called  attention 
to  the  ^f  act  that  other  symptoms  of  heart  weakness,  such 
as  shortness  of  breath,  are  not  at  all  uncommon  at  this 
age.  Holt  accepts  this  explanation  of  the  child's  quick 
fatigue  about  the  eighth  year.  Christopher  does  not 
hesitate  to  call  it  the  fatigue  year. 

It  would  seem  quite  possible  that  the  explanation  of 
the  crisis,  frequently  noticed  before  it  was  explained,  is 
to  be  sought  in  a  general  condition  of  the  body,  which 


THE   CHILD  ENTERING  SCHOOL  141 

manifests  itself  in  a  weakness  of  several  organs.  This  is 
the  time  when  the  brain  has  stopped  its  rapid  increase 
in  weight.  The  permanent  teeth  appear,  symptoms  of 
a  preparation  for  a  change  in  food  and  in  mode  of  life. 
Muscular  activity  is  increasing  rapidly.  The  old  struc- 
ture is  not  fully  adapted  to  the  new  needs  and  conditions. 
It  must  readapt  itself.  This  period  of  readaptation,  we 
might  almost  say  of  reorganization,  is  necessarily  a  pe- 
riod of  weakness.  If  the  nervous  control  of  the  arteries, 
the  vaso-motor  apparatus,  is  still  incomplete,  as  it  may 
well  be,  we  should  expect  to  find  the  body  ill  adapted  to 
meet  the  new  emergencies. 

We  have  seen  that  about  eight  in  the  boy,  the  strength 
of  the  muscles  of  the  forearm  is  increasing  far  more 
rapidly  than  the  cross-section  of  the  muscles  warrants. 
We  noticed  in  Gilbert's  investigations  that  power  of 
rapidity  in  tapping  increases  rapidly  at  the  same  age. 
We  found  that  the  muscles  fatigued  easily.  These 
facts  would  seem  to  show  that  the  motor  centres  in  the 
cerebrum  which  control  the  movements  of  forearm  and 
hand  are  developing  very  rapidly.  The  movements  of 
the  fingers  become  stronger  and  more  precise  through- 
out the  epoch. 

Mortality  continues  to  decrease  throughout  this  and 
the  next  epoch.  Judged  from  this  standpoint  alone,  the 
child  is  steadily  improving  in  health  and  vigor.  But  at 
eight  there  is  a  rapid,  often  sudden,  increase  of  mor- 
bidity. Evidently  the  crisis  or  transition  is  not  suf- 
ficient to  affect  life  directly.  It  leaves  the  child  in  an 
unstable,  sensitive  condition. 

Schmid-Monnard  has  called  attention  to  the  fact  that 
about  seven,  or  very  soon  after  that  year,  the  morbidity 
of  the  girl  begins  noticeably  to  exceed  that  of  the  boy, 


142  GROWTH  AND  EDUCATION 

and  that  the  increase  is  very  largely  due  to  poverty  of 
blood  and  its  consequences.  We  can  consider  this  sub- 
ject better  when  we  study  the  next  period.  It  is  sufficient 
to  observe  here  that  this  points  to  the  great  need  of 
exercise  and  open  air  during  this  first  crisis.  We  must 
not  forget  that  this  is  the  golden  time  for  storing  up 
material  and  vigor  against  the  pubertal  metamorphosis, 
whose  lean  years  are  so  soon  to  follow.  Hence  the  su- 
preme need  of  the  epoch  is  hygienic  surroundings  suited 
to  promote  general  growth  and  vigor.  The  child  should 
have  plenty  of  plain  food,  of  air,  sunshine,  and  sleep. 
Light,  air,  and  suitable  desks  are  an  absolute  necessity 
in  the  school.  The  lower  grades  need  the  newest,  most 
carefully  constructed,  best  warmed  and  ventilated  build- 
ings. They  are  far  more  susceptible  to  bad  conditions 
than  the  older  pupils  of  the  high  school. 

Curvature  of  the  spine  is  easily  started  in  this  epoch, 
though  more  frequent  and  aggravated  in  the  next.  The 
power  of  the  eye  to  accommodate  itself  to  different  dis- 
tances is  now  very  great.  Dr.  Standish  has  called  at- 
tention to  the  danger  which  springs  from  this  fact.  The 
child  feels  that  he  sees  an  object  better  when  it  is  held 
near  to  his  eyes.  In  reading  or  study,  especially  if  the 
words  are  new  or  difficult,  he  holds  the  book  too  near 
or  bends  over  it.  He  thus  forms  a  habit  of  near-sight- 
edness which  soon  becomes  fixed  as  a  disease.  He  needs 
careful  training,  and  often  much  reminding,  to  teach 
him  to  keep  the  book  at  a  proper  distance. 

We  have  seen  that  the  craving  for  exercise  of  a 
rapidly  growing  centre  of  the  brain  manifests  itself  as 
an  interest.    Superintendent  Taylor x  has  attempted  to 

1  "  Children's  Hopes,"  Beport  o/N.  Y.  State  Supt.  of  Public  Instruc- 
tion, 1896. 


THE  CHILD  ENTERING  SCHOOL  143 

solve  the  question  as  to  the  interests  of  this  epoch  by 
answers  made  by  children  to  the  question  as  to  what 
they  hoped  to  do  when  grown  up.  He  tells  us  that 
trades  are  most  popular  between  seven  and  nine.  An 
occupation  dealing  with  tools,  plants,  or  animals,  ap- 
peals most  strongly  to  the  younger  boys.  Many  dwell 
with  evident  delight  on  details  of  farm  life.  Young 
carpenters  and  masons  are  anxious  to  make  a  house,  an 
ice-box,  or  almost  anything  useful.  More  boys  between 
seven  and  ten  wish  to  be  railroad  men,  firemen,  or  engin- 
eers, or  policemen,  than  between  eleven  and  fourteen. 
Girls  now  wish  to  be  dressmakers  or  teachers.  Nearly 
all  children  regard  handcraft  with  great  favor.  Until 
the  age  of  eleven  or  twelve  they  look  forward  with 
bright  anticipation  to  the  time  when  they  may  do  man- 
ual labor.  I  have  given  Superintendent  Taylor's  words 
as  far  as  is  consistent  with  condensation. 

The  kindergarten  child  was  quieter,  more  inclined 
to  use  his  sensory  organs.  Almost  since  babyhood  he 
has  been  observing  and  imitating.  In  imagination  he  has 
been  and  played  the  part  of  all  sorts  and  conditions  of 
animals  and  men.  He  has  played  himself  into  a  wider 
knowledge  of  the  world  than  we  suspect.  But  his  world 
has  enlarged  so  rapidly  that  he  has  not  been  able  to 
adjust  himself  to  it.  Children  at  this  age  are  predom- 
inantly motor  and  are  anxious  to  know  the  use  of  ev- 
erything. The  kindergarten  child  asks,  "  What  is  it  ?  " 
The  child  in  the  primary  grades  asks,  "  What  is  it 
for  ?  "  It  is  a  period  of  very  incomplete  development  of 
the  highest  and  finest  motor  centres,  especially  of  the 
fingers ;  and  one  of  quick  fatigue.  The  child  is  anxious 
to  do  and  to  make.  The  creating  and  fashioning  instinct 
is  beginning  to  manifest    itself.    It  is  not  enough  to 


144  GROWTH  AND  EDUCATION 

imitate  in  imagination  and  to  play  that  he  is  doing  some- 
thing.   He  wishes  to  realize  some  of  his  imaginations. 

But  imagination  no  longer  covers  a  multitude  of 
defects,  or  makes  deficiencies  good.  He  feels  his  lack 
of  success,  and  is  easily  discouraged.  The  kindergarten 
child  draws  anything  and  everything  which  is  proposed 
to  him.  Now  the  child  hesitates.  Mr.  Bailey  tells  us 
that  if  he  does  not  learn  to  draw  before  he  is  nine 
years  old,  he  will  not  learn  at  all  in  the  school.  Draw- 
ing is  only  one  of  many  accomplishments  where  the  child 
now  forms  habits  of  hesitation  and  inertia,  habits  whose 
eradication  becomes  more  difficult  as  years  go  by.  There 
is  a  very  real  danger  of  his  sinking  into  inactivity  or 
living  in  an  imaginary  world,  realizing  and  accomplish- 
ing nothing  while  dreaming  of  everything. 

Triplett  finds  that  the  years  from  seven  to  nine  are 
characterized  by  frequency  of  loss  of  interest  in  school 
work  and  of  failure.  It  is  not  impossible  that  the  tend- 
ency to  drop  out  of  school  and  go  into  trade  or  any 
kind  of  work  which  shows  its  results  several  years  later 
may  be  started  now.  It  is  a  time  of  much  discourage- 
ment for  the  child,  and  almost  equally  so  for  teacher  and 
superintendent. 

Any  manual  work  must  be  easy  and  simple,  or  it  will 
add  to  his  discouragement.  He  needs  much  encourage- 
ment, and  even  then  accomplishes  little.  Perseverance 
and  long  application  to  tasks  at  any  one  time  cannot  be 
expected  of  him.  If  the  habit  could  be  compelled,  it 
would  work  more  harm  than  good  to  his  immature 
nervous  system. 

His  actions  are  not  well  coordinated.  He  is  impul- 
sive and  restless.  Imitation  and  suggestion  play  a  very 
large  part  in  his  life.    We  have  seen  that  the  higher 


THE   CHILD   ENTERING  SCHOOL  145 

mental  powers  do  not  become  evident  until  the  age  of 
eleven  or  twelve.  The  child  can  memorize  well  and 
easily,  and  it  is  probably  a  good  time  for  this  kind  of 
work.  He  learns  language  by  imitation,  but  has  no  use 
for  rules  of  grammar.  He  can  acquire  arithmetical 
methods,  but  finds  the  explanations  offered  by  book  or 
teacher  exceedingly  difficult  or  quite  incomprehensible. 
He  sees  concrete  illustrations  of  many  great  laws.  He 
is  amassing  stores  of  experience.  He  thinks  much  and 
about  many  things,  but  thinks  as  a  child.  He  is  gather- 
ing the  material  out  of  which  he  will  later  frame  the 
ideal,  plan,  and  structure  of  his  life  and  work.  But  the 
material  will  take  form  and  life  after  adolescence. 
Here  again,  as  in  his  physical  life,  the  caterpillar  is 
storing  up  material  against  the  time  of  metamorphosis. 

The  life  of  the  old  New  England  farm  was  probably 
by  far  the  best  education  for  this  epoch.  "  The  child 
grew  and  waxed  strong."  He  was  busied,  but  not  over- 
taxed. He  foimd  plenty  of  daily  tasks  suited  to  his 
strength  and  intelligence,  which  tested  his  ingenuity, 
and  trained  him  to  take  the  initiative.  He  grew  up 
largely  out  of  doors,  surrounded  by  natural  objects 
which  continually  stirred  his  curiosity.  Even  the 
monotony  of  life  trained  him  to  form  habits  of  patience, 
industry,  care,  and  of  accepting  responsibility  as  he 
could  bear  it.  No  modern  system  of  education  can  hope 
or  should  be  expected  to  accomplish  all  the  good  things 
which  under  such  training  seemed  to  come  as  a  matter 
of  course.  We  must  make  good  these  losses  as  far  as 
we  can,  and  be  grateful  for  the  compensations  of  modern 
life. 

The  child  is  better  off  at  school  than  at  home.  But 
he  needs  a  peculiar  school,  course  of  study,  and  methods 


146  GROWTH  AND  EDUCATION 

of  training  and  instruction.  Let  us  not  forget  that  in 
assigning  work  our  question  should  always  be,  What 
and  how  much  will  best  promote  growth?  not,  How 
much  can  he  endure  ?  We  wish  to  find  the  kind  and 
amount  of  work  which  will  furnish  the  best  and  most 
profitable  exercise  for  those  centres  in  the  brain  which 
most  crave  and  need  it. 

Unfortunately  the  higher  centres  of  logical  thought 
and  inference  are  not  yet  mature  enough  to  demand 
exercise.  The  lack  of  mental  interests  is  the  great 
source  of  difficulty  at  this  period.  We  often  attempt  to 
impose  adult  or  adolescent  interests  upon  the  young 
child.  We  fail,  and  his  last  state  is  worse  than  his  first. 
He  loses  what  little  interest  he  ever  had,  and  is  fortun- 
ate if  he  does  not  contract  an  aversion  to  the  subject 
and  to  study  in  general.  The  old  Greek  philosopher 
said  that  a  child  should  not  learn  to  read  until  he  is 
ten  years  old.  Many  superintendents  say  that  children 
in  the  lower  grades  mark  time,  making  little  real  pro- 
^gress.  If  there  are  no  special  interests,  teachers  and 
superintendents  are  not  to  be  blamed  if  they  frankly 
confess  that  they  cannot  find  them. 

Professor  Donaldson  says  that  at  this  age  the  course 
of  study  should  be  in  the  nature  of  a  reconnoissance. 
Make  the  exercise  general,  stimulating  all  the  areas 
and  powers  of  the  brain  successively.  It  would  seem 
to  be  a  time  for  much  variety  of  work  rather  than  for  a 
close  correlation  which  quickly  fatigues.  Method  seems 
more  important  than  subject  at  this  age. 

But  is  it  not  possible  that  we  have  been  seeking  the 
chief  end  of  education  at  this  epoch  in  the  wrong  direc- 
tion ?  What  the  child  learns  from  books  by  application 
and  mental  effort  is  the  smallest  part  of  his  acquisitions. 


THE  CHILD  ENTERING  SCHOOL  147 

He  is  now  absorbing  subconsciously  and  without  much 
logical  thought.  He  learns  through  imitation  and  sug- 
gestion without  knowing  that  he  has  learned.  He  has 
learned  to  talk  by  imitating  his  elders.  He  acquires  at 
the  same  time  their  peculiarities,  of  dialect,  idiom,  pro- 
nunciation, and  inflection.  These  subconscious  acquisi- 
tions crystallize  in  habits  of  speech.  In  later  life  he 
becomes  conscious  that  some  of  them  are  bad.  He 
avoids  the  unfortunate  idiom,  and  is  on  his  guard 
against  it.  But  in  careless  moments,  when  he  has  re- 
laxed his  vigilance,  he  will  surely  use  it.  It  has  become 
a  part  of  his  real  self.  The  child  imitates  the  gait  and 
manners  and  almost  any  striking  peculiarity  of  teacher 
or  parent  with  like  residts.  Not  only  habits  of  speech 
and  action,  but  preferences  and  aversions,  prejudices 
and  superstitions,  aesthetic  and  moral  standards,  even 
religious  tendencies,  arise,  grow,  and  take  form,  as  the 
result  of  surrounding  conditions,  he  knows  not  how. 
But  these  habits  of  speech,  action,  and  thought  soon 
become  fixed  and  unchangeable,  and  fashion  his  whole 
life.  Many  or  most  of  the  family  peculiarities  of  habit, 
action,  and  thought,  which  we  usually  regard  as  in- 
herited, are  really  the  result  of  the  constantly  repeated 
impressions  of  early  environment.  These  impressions 
are  deep  and  lasting,  and  often  consciously  remembered 
in  old  age,  when  all  else  has  been  forgotten. 

Our  brethren  of  the  Roman  Catholic  Church  can 
teach  us  a  valuable  lesson  on  this  subject.  They  have 
clearly  recognized  the  importance  of  a  right  atmosphere 
in  education  at  this  epoch.  If  I  am  not  mistaken,  what 
they  value  most  in  the  parochial  school  is  not  so  much 
the  daily  lesson  or  the  imparting  of  information,  as  the 
religious  atmosphere,  the  habits  of  reverence  and  obe^ 


148  GROWTH  AND  EDUCATION 

dience,  the  moulding  and  fashioning  of  the  young  life. 
With  a  wisdom  born  of  ages  of  experience,  they  recog- 
nize that  the  lesson  may  be  misunderstood  or  forgotten, 
but  that  the  habit  will  be  permanent. 

Many  habits  which  the  child  does  not  readily  acquire 
of  himself  may  be  developed  and  fostered  by  the  pa- 
tience and  perseverance  of  parent  and  teacher.  Habits 
of  neatness  and  punctuality,  of  self-control  and  courtesy, 
of  truthfulness  and  reverence,  and  of  a  host  of  other 
virtues,  may  thus  become  thoroughly  established.  They 
are  far  more  easily  acquired  now  than  at  any  later 
time.  The  child  expects  this  sort  of  training.  He  lives 
under  an  Old  Testament  dispensation  of  laws,  rites,  and 
ceremonies.  He  expects  that  punishment  will  follow 
disobedience.  When  he  is  held  kindly  and  firmly  to 
a  suitable  discipline,  he  is  receiving  his  first  and  best 
lessons  in  habits  of  morality  which  are  of  far  greater 
importance  than  precepts  or  explanations.  Without  this 
previous  training  the  religious  development  at  adoles- 
cence will  be  feeble,  abnormal,  and  defective.  He  is 
gaining  at  the  same  time  through  his  affections  an 
education  of  the  heart  which  is  above  all  price. 

We  do  not  sufficiently  emphasize  the  importance  of 
the  development  of  right  feelings  and  emotions.  These 
stand  very  close  to  and  sway  the  will.  My  earnestness 
and  vigor  of  action  depends  upon  how  much  I  care  for 
certain  persons  and  causes  even  more  than  upon  how 
much  I  know  about  them.  I  may  know  much,  and  care 
little,  and  hence  do  nothing.  "With  the  heart  man 
believeth  unto  righteousness,"  even  more  than  with  the 
intellect;  and  "  out  of  the  heart  are  the  issues  of  life." 
Greatheart  conquers  Giant  Despair  and  kills  him,  when 
Swelled  Head  is  utterly  defeated.    President  Hall  has 


THE   CHILD   ENTERING   SCHOOL  149 

well  said  that  the  education  of  the  twentieth  century 
will  develop  the  heart  as  well  as  the  intellect. 

The  tired  teacher  in  her  room  in  the  evening  reviews 
the  work  of  the  day.  Tommy  has  been  a  little  more 
amenable  and  industrious,  and  a  little  less  outrageous. 
And  Gladys  has  been  somewhat  more  attentive  and 
truthful.  But  language  was  poor  and  numbers  were 
bad.  If  the  Commonwealth  could  speak  to  that  teacher, 
would  it  not  say :  "  I  care  infinitely  more  for  Tommy's 
habits,  and  Gladys's  thoughts  and  behavior  than  I  do 
for  all  the  language  and  numbers  in  the  world,  import- 
ant as  these  may  be.  You  are  laying  the  foundations 
of  loyal  and  law-abiding  citizenship." 

The  mother,  with  her  monotonous  daily  round  of 
cares  and  tasks,  wishes  that  she  could  give  more  time 
to  instructing  her  children.  She  forgets  that  her  indus- 
try, fidelity,  cheerfulness,  hope,  courage,  faith,  reverence, 
calmness,  kindliness,  and  courtesy,  are  all  reproducing 
themselves  in  the  minds  of  her  children.  This  is  edu- 
cation for  health,  vigor,  power,  and  efficiency,  not  merely 
for  learning.  It  builds  up  instead  of  puffing  up.  The 
child  left  to  nurses  acquires  the  virtues  of  a  faithful 
servant  or  the  vices  of  a  hireling. 

The  color-sergeant  in  Kipling's  'Eathen  has  the 
essential  characteristics  of  a  great  teacher.  When  his 
men  enter  the  battle,  they  do  not  remember  much  of 
all  his  teachings.  But  without  them  they  could  never 
have  been  held  in  line  during  the  weary  hours  of  wait- 
ing and  suffering,  or  lifted  through  the  charge  that 
wins  the  day.  The  work  of  the  mother  and  of  the 
teacher  in  the  lower  grades  is  very  similar. 

Thus  this  period  of  formation  of  habits,  which  seems 
at  first  uninteresting  and  unimportant,  proves  to  be  the 


150  GROWTH   AND  EDUCATION 

time  of  widest  and  grandest  opportunity.  It  would  be 
hard  to  decide  whether  the  education  of  the  young  child 
or  of  the  adolescent  demands  the  better  teacher.  The 
earlier  grade  probably  requires  even  greater  skill  and 
wisdom  than  the  latter.  Because  the  work  and  personal 
influence  of  the  primary  teacher  is  less  clearly  remem- 
bered or  may  be  entirely  forgotten,  we  may  sometimes 
be  tempted  to  think  that  her  share  in  the  development 
of  mind,  heart,  and  character  is  smaller.  The  pupil  for- 
gets who  has  influenced  and  moulded  him  just  because 
the  results  of  her  training  have  become  so  completely  a 
part  of  himself  that  he  easily  considers  them  a  part  of 
his  hereditary  endowment.  This  is  the  highest  possible 
testimonial  to  the  value  and  efficiency  of  her  training. 

For  similar  reasons  the  story  has  great  power  and 
value  during  this  epoch.  It  is  perhaps  the  best  means 
of  leading  the  child's  feelings,  hopes,  and  desires  into 
right  channels.  Says  Miss  Bryant  in  "  How  to  Tell 
Stories  to  Children "  :  UA  story  is  a  work  of  art. 
The  story-teller  who  has  given  the  listening  children 
such  pleasure  as  I  mean  may  or  may  not  have  added 
a  fact  to  the  content  of  their  minds ;  she  has  inevitably 
added  something  to  the  vital  powers  of  their  souls. 
She  has  given  a  wholesome  exercise  to  the  emotional 
muscles  of  the  spirit,  has  opened  up  new  windows  to 
the  imagination,  and  added  some  line  or  color  to  the 
ideal  of  life  and  art  which  is  always  taking  form  in 
the  heart  of  a  child.  She  has  in  short  accomplished  the 
one  great  aim  of  story-telling  —  to  enlarge  and  enrich 
the  child's  spiritual  experience,  and  stimulate  healthy 
reaction  upon  it." 

During  this  epoch  the  end,  aim,  and  method  of 
education  is  one  and  the  same  in  the  home  and  in  the 


THE  CHILD   ENTERING  SCHOOL  151 

school.  The  wisest  and  most  efficient  teacher  can  ac- 
complish little,  if  not  supported  by  the  conversation 
and  atmosphere  of  the  home.  If  this  is  materialistic, 
trivial,  or  vulgar,  all  the  schools  and  colleges  in  the 
land  cannot  save  the  child  from  philistinism  and  vul- 
garity, immorality,  for \unmorality.  If  the  home  atmo- 
sphere be  one  of  courtesy  and  kindliness,  justice  and 
honesty,  of  reverence  for  God  and  man,  of  high  thought 
and  feeling  and  aims,  we  may  look  forward  to  the 
future  with  all  confidence  and  hope.  Here,  at  least, 
parent  and  teacher  may  and  must  find  no  difficulty  in 
working  together.  The  primary  grade  should  be  a  sort 
of  home-extension  movement. 

Evidently  during  an  epoch  like  this  we  should  lengthen 
the  recesses,  multiply  pauses  between  the  class  exer- 
cises, and  allow  frequent  rest  and  change  of  position. 
The  great  importance  of  singing  has  been  generally  re- 
cognized. Marches  and  simple  dances  may  be  very  use- 
ful. It  is  an  excellent  time  for  observation  and  nature- 
study.  But  after  all  possible  mitigations  of  confinement, 
much  remains  to  be  done.  Schmid-Monnard  noticed 
that  German  children  during  the  first  year  of  school 
life  lagged  in  growth  or  even  lost  weight.  He  tells  us 
that  children  sent  too  young  to  school  are  graduated 
with  little  credit  or  drop  out  by  the  way.  This  is  espe- 
cially noticeable  in  precocious  children  with  frail  bodies 
or  weak  nervous  endowment.  The  heavy  muscles  tingle 
for  exercise,  the  mental  powers  are  small  and  very  im- 
mature. Did  Nature  ever  intend  that  school-room,  desk, 
and  book,  should  play  so  large  a  part  in  the  child's  life 
as  they  do  under  our  present  system  ?  Was  it  so  in  old 
times  on  the  farm?  Growth  is  still  the  chief  business 
of  the  child,  and  development  of  the  sense-organs  and 


152  GROWTH   AND  EDUCATION 

of  the  heavier  muscles  is  almost  or  quite  as  important. 
The  mental  powers  can  wait  for  their  exercise,  but  those 
of  the  muscle  must  be  realized  and  utilized  soon,  if  at 
all.  If  there  is  any  truth  in  our  argument  that  the 
muscle  is  the  strategic  centre  of  development  of  all  the 
vital  powers  and  even  of  the  brain  itself,  muscular  and 
physical  training  is  far  more  important  than  mental. 
We  leave  the  subject  here  to  return  to  it  again  in  the 
chapters  on  physical  training,  and  especially  in  the  dis- 
cussion of  the  Value  of  Play  in  Education. 

We  naturally  ask :  Is  there  any  explanation  of  the 
peculiarities  of  this  epoch,  its  small  amount  of  mental 
gain,  its  sudden  rise  of  morbidity  in  spite  of  the  declin- 
ing death-rate  ?  President  Hall *  says :  "  The  years  from 
about  eight  to  twelve  constitute  an  unique  period 
of  human  life.  Everything  suggests  the  culmination  of 
one  stage  of  life,  as  if  it  thus  represented  what  was 
once,  and  for  a  very  protracted  and  relatively  stationary 
period,  the  age  of  maturity  in  some  remote,  perhaps 
pygmoid,  stage  of  human  evolution." 

The  arboreal  life  of  our  lemuroid  and  anthropoid 
ancestors  lasted  long.  In  climbing  forms  the  trunk 
remains  long  and  the  legs  short,  as  in  still  more  primi- 
tive quadrupedal  ancestors.  The  arms  are  long  and 
used  for  locomotion.  When  the  anthropoid  ancestor  of 
man  descended  from  the  trees  and  walked  upon  the 
ground,  the  legs  lengthened  and  strengthened  to  give 
a  longer  and  firmer  stride.  One  of  the  most  marked 
differences  between  man  and  all  the  anthropoid  apes  is 
his  far  greater  length  of  leg  and  his  relatively  shorter 
trunk  and  arms. 

1  Hall,  Adolescence,  p.  ix. 


THE  CHILD   ENTERING  SCHOOL  153 

Ranke  tells  us  that  the  length  of  the  free  leg  in  the 
male  gorilla  measures  only  sixty-nine  per  cent  of  the 
length  of  the  trunk  ;  in  the  chimpanzee  and  orang  about 
seventy-eight  per  cent ;  in  man  134.6  per  cent.  In  the 
gorilla  the  length  of  the  trunk  is  fifty  units,  that  of  the 
free  leg  only  about  thirty-five.  In  the  human  being  the 
trunk  measures  a  little  over  thirty-six  units,  and  the  free 
portion  of  the  legs  about  forty-nine.  By  a  unit  we  mean 
in  each  case  one  per  cent  of  the  total  height.  The  two 
portions  of  the  body  are  about  as  fifty  to  thirty-five  in 
length.  In  the  human  being  the  larger  portion  is  in  the 
legs,  in  the  gorilla  in  the  trunk. 

A  similar,  though  perhaps  somewhat  smaller,  change  in 
proportions  has  apparently  gradually  taken  place  in  the 
evolution  of  man.  The  trunk  contains  the  vital  organs 
which  must  furnish  the  income  of  food,  fuel,  and  oxygen, 
and  remove  the  waste  of  the  body.  The  longer  and  stronger 
leg  requires  far  more  energy  to  use  it  properly  and 
effectively.  But  while  the  leg  lengthens,  the  trunk 
shortens ;  and  thus  its  capacity  decreases.  This  seri- 
ously effects  the  metabolism  of  the  body.  Even  now  the 
men  and  women  of  greatest  endurance  are  those  with 
long  trunk  and  short  legs,  who  have  departed  slightly 
less  than  the  majority  from  the  primitive  form.  Similar 
slightly  more  primitive  proportions  seem  to  characterize 
the  Asiatic  races  to-day. 

The  early  development  of  the  child  goes  on  as  if  to 
produce  just  such  a  body  as  we  find  in  the  anthropoid. 
The  long  trunk  and  short  legs  are  very  marked  in 
infancy.  During  early  childhood  the  development  of  the 
legs  is  rapid,  but  hardly  too  rapid  to  compensate  for 
the  arrest  of  development  of  the  rear  portion  of  the 
body  during  prenatal  life.    Then,  probably  about  the 


154  GROWTH   AND  EDUCATION 

age  when  our  arboreal  ancestor  was  approaching  ma- 
turity (between seven  and  nine?),  the  rapid  growth  of  the 
legs  is  at  present  far  from  complete.  Sexual  maturity 
is  deferred  until  the  growth  of  the  legs  is  nearer  com- 
pletion. But  for  a  time  the  legs  must  outgrow  the 
trunk,  so  to  speak.  Expenses  threaten  to  exceed  income. 
There  must  be  a  readjustment  and  increase  of  trunk 
length  to  meet  the  new  demands.  But  this  readjustment 
is  not  made  until  the  age  of  fourteen  or  later,  when  the 
trunk  begins  to  increase  as  fast  as  the  legs.  Between 
eight  and  thirteen  inclusive  in  the  boy,  and  a  little 
earlier  in  the  girl,  there  is  a  time  when  the  growth  of 
the  legs  has  disturbed  the  economy  of  the  growth  of  the 
body.  The  disturbance  is  usually  not  great  enough  to 
affect  life.  The  death-rate  continues  to  decline.  But  it 
produces  temporary  weakness,  and  a  tendency  to  various 
disorders.  Hence  morbidity  rises  until  increase  of  girths 
and  of  trunk  length,  at  fourteen  and  sixteen  in  the  boy, 
restores  the  proper  balance.  The  increase  in  height 
strains  especially  the  small  and  weak  heart,  which,  for 
aught  we  know,  may  have  been  adjusted  to  a  horizontal 
body.  For  not  a  few  defective  adjustments  to  the 
upright  position  still  persist  in  man.  Hence  forms  of 
heart-weakness  or  inefficiency  often  accompany  rapid 
growth  in  height.  But  this  is  only  one  of  the  elements 
of  weakness  in  the  boy  between  the  ages  of  eight  and 
thirteen,  in  the  girl  a  year  or  two  earlier. 

Every  readjustment  affecting  a  large  part  of  the 
body  is  expensive,  and  liable  to  be  exhausting,  and  to 
leave  little  excess  of  material  for  growth.  The  new  use 
of  legs,  arms,  and  especially  of  the  hands,  required  the 
development  of  new  centres  in  the  brain.  Time  and 
place  must   be   {pund    for   their    development   in   the 


THE  CHILD   ENTERING  SCHOOL  155 

life  of  the  individual  child.  Thus  Nature  has  her  hands 
more  than  full  to  meet  the  emergencies  of  this  epoch. 
If,  as  we  have  reason  to  believe,  the  forearm  centres 
in  the  brain  are  developing  rapidly  about  eight,  those  of 
the  fingers  probable  mature  a  year  or  two  later.  The 
development  of  the  centres  of  thought  and  will  must 
wait  for  the  completion  of  the  lower  and  essential  por- 
tions. Hence  the  development  of  the  highest  and  pecul- 
iarly human  mental  powers  takes  place  mainly  during 
adolescence.  Then  Nature,  having  more  nearly  regained 
the  normal  proportions  of  the  body,  and  the  proper  bal- 
ance of  income  and  expense,  has  time  and  material  for 
her  crowning  work. 

Of  course  any  such  explanation  is  largely  theoretical 
or  hypothetical,  but  it  seems  to  accord  with  and  explain 
most  of  the  facts  of  anthropoid  and  human  structure 
and  development. 


y 


CHAPTER  XII 

THE  GIRL  AND  THE  BOY  IN  THE  GRAMMAR  GRADES 

Our  study  in  this  chapter  includes  somewhat  more  than 
the  fourth  triennium.  The  years  which  will  occupy  our 
attention  are  those  between  eleven  and  fourteen  or  fif- 
teen in  the  boy,  and  between  nine  and  thirteen  or  four- 
teen in  the  girl.  The  epoch  falls  a  year  earlier  or  later 
than  the  average  in  certain  localities  and  under  certain 
conditions  of  life.  But  the  girl  is  at  this  epoch  at  least 
one  year  more  precocious  than  the  boy. 

The  weight  of  the  boy  at  twelve  is  about  thirty-five 
kilos  (77  lbs.)  ;  at  fifteen  it  is  forty-eight  kilos  (107 
lbs.).  The  gain  during  the  fourth  triennium  and  the 
first  half  of  the  fifth  is  slow,  about  thirty  per  cent,  but 
the  marked  acceleration  in  growth  in  weight  during  the 
last  half  raises  the  gain  to  forty  per  cent  for  the  fifth 
epoch.  At  twelve  the  boy  has  somewhat  more  than  one 
half,  at  fifteen  three  fourths  of  the  adult  weight. 

The  girl  is  slightly  heavier  than  the  boy  both  at 
twelve  and  fifteen,  for  her  acceleration  in  growth  in 
weight  comes  a  year  or  more  earlier.  Her  gain  for  the 
fourth  and  fifth  triennia  is  a  little  more  than  thirty- 
five  per  cent.  She  has  at  twelve  two  thirds,  and  at 
fifteen  nine  tenths,  of  her  adult  weight  at  twenty. 

The  height  of  the  boy  at  twelve  is  140.7  centimeters 
(55  in.);  at  fifteen  it  is  159.8  centimeters  (63  in.).  The 
gain  during  the  fourth  triennium  is  about  eleven  per 
cent,  during  the  fifth  about  fourteen  per  cent.    He  has 


IN  THE  GRAMMAR  GRADES  157 

at  twelve  four  fifths,  and  at  fifteen  nine  tenths  of  the  adult 
height.  The  girl  at  twelve  is  about  two  centimeters  or 
nearly  an  inch  taller  than  the  boy  ;  at  fifteen  she  is  about 
three  centimeters  or  a  little  more  thau  an  inch  shorter. 
Her  gain  during  the  fourth  epoch  is  about  thirteen  per 
cent,  during  the  fifth  a  little  less  than  ten  per  cent.  She 
has  attained  at  twelve  almost  nine  tenths  of  her  adult 
height,  and  at  fifteen  is  practically  full  grown.  Here, 
however,  there  is  much  individual  and  family  variation. 
The  boy  at  twelve  has  about  twenty-five,  and  at  fifteen 
a  little  over  thirty,  kilos  weight  for  each  meter  height. 
Or  at  twelve  he  has  1.4  pounds  weight  per  inch  of 
height ;  at  fifteen  1.7  ;  at  nineteen  about  two.  The  rela- 
tive weight  is  slightly  greater  in  the  girl. 

The  strength  of  squeeze  in  the  boy  is  at  twelve  about 
forty  per  cent  of  that  at  twenty,  and  at  fifteen  about 
sixty  per  cent.  The  ratios  in  the  girl  are  much  higher 
on  account  of  her  precocity  and  because  of  her  much 
smaller  adult  strength.  The  growth  of  the  internal 
organs  is  generally  slow  between  nine  and  twelve,  but 
quickens  during  the  next  epoch.  The  rate  of  meta- 
bolism is  sinking  toward  the  adult  condition.  During 
the  fourth  epoch  the  heart  is  still  small  and  light,  the 
arteries  are  large,  and  the  blood-pressure  is  low.  Heart, 
lungs,  and  muscular  girths  are  increasing  slowly.  Their 
period  of  accelerated  growth  will  begin  about  the  four- 
teenth year  in  the  boy  and  somewhat  earlier  in  the  girl. 
The  death-rate  is  very  low,  but  morbidity  is  rising  to 
its  first  maximum  about  thirteen.  At  nine  or  ten  there 
may  be  a  slight  improvement  in  morbidity. 

The  tenth  year  in  the  girl  and  the  eleventh  in  the 
boy  are  years  of  very  slow  growth  in  both  weight  and 
height.    This  retardation  of  growth  may  be  hastened  or 


158  GROWTH  AND   EDUCATION 

postponed  a  year  in  different  localities.  The  girl  is  a 
full  year  more  precocious  than  the  boy,  and  her  year  of 
minimum  growth  may  fall  at  nine.  The  slackening  of 
growth  is  usually  less  marked  in  her  case.  Her  develop- 
ment is  more  crowded  and  hurried.  Series  of  changes, 
which  go  on  more  nearly  successively  in  the  boy,  are 
often  telescoped,  as  it  were,  in  her  case. 

Nature  economizes  her  material,  husbands  her  re- 
sources, and,  as  Quetelet  says,  rallies  her  forces  against 
the  critical  pubertal  period  which  is  close  at  hand.  The 
period  of  rest  and  economy  is  followed  by  a  period  of 
very  rapid  increase  in  height,  lasting  three  or  four  years 
in  the  girl,  and  a  year  or  two  longer  in  the  boy.  The 
term  of  rapid  increase  in  weight  and  girth  begins  a 
year  or  more  later  than  that  of  increase  in  height.  The 
result  is  that  for  two  or  three  years  the  child  is  lean 
and  lank,  and  looks  as  if  it  had  been  violently  stretched. 
It  seems  to  be  all  legs  and  arms. 

All  growth  is  expensive.  Except  during  early  in- 
fancy much  material  is  consumed  to  add  very  little, 
and  each  additional  pound  costs  more.  But  additions 
to  the  length  of  the  limbs  are  especially  expensive.  The 
growth  starts  in  the  bones.  These  lengthen,  and  mus- 
cles, nerves,  and  arteries,  must  all  be  stretched  and  re- 
adjusted to  the  new  conditions.  The  longer  leg  is  a 
longer  lever,  fitted  to  give  a  longer  stride  and  greater 
speed.  As  it  lengthens,  it  requires  more  force  to  move 
and  control  it.  But  the  addition  to  the  length  of  the 
muscles  has  not  increased  their  strength.  For  a  time 
the  new  material  may  be  a  source  of  weakness,  and 
sometimes  of  pain.  The  needed  increase  in  girth  follows 
later.  The  brain  also  must  become  accustomed  to  the 
new  conditions.    The  cerebellum,  owing  to  the  changes 


IN  THE  GRAMMAR  GRADES  159 

in  the  length  of  the  legs,  and  in  the  proportions  of  their 
parts,  must  change  its  habits  and  rhythms  in  discharging 
its  impulses.  Walking  must  be  learned  almost  anew. 
This  is  no  easy  matter.  The  boy  stumbles  over  his  feet, 
and  the  girl  is  ungraceful.  They  are  conscious  of  the 
fact,  but  cannot  understand  it.  Neither  of  them  knows 
what  to  do  with  hands  and  arms.    It  is  a  trying  time. 

With  all  possible  economy  the  expenses  of  the  body 
are  increasing  in  several  ways.  Growth  is  in  itself  an  ex- 
pensive process,  and  demands  the  combustion  of  a  large 
amount  of  material.1  The  baby  uses  two  or  three  times 
as  much  food  and  oxygen  for  each  pound  of  weight, 
and  produces  as  much  more  heat  and  waste,  as  the  man 
engaged  in  moderate  labor.  Much  of  the  food  is  con- 
sumed, and  only  a  small  part  added  to  the  weight.  And 
the  gain  of  each  additional  pound  each  successive  month 
and  year  demands  an  increased  amount  of  waste.  The 
baby  during  the  last  half  of  the  first  month  requires, 
according  to  Camerer,  about  twenty  grams  of  milk  for 
each  gram's  gain  in  weight.  During  the  fourth  and 
fifth  months,  it  requires  at  least  twice  as  much  for  the 
same  gain.  Between  the  middle  and  end  of  the  first 
year  the  ratio  doubles  once  more,  and  the  baby  is  very 
economical. 

The  body  is  increasing  in  three  dimensions,  but  the 
strength  of  the  muscles  is  proportional  to  the  area  of 
the  cross-section,  which  increases  in  only  two,  and  slowly 
at  that.  The  weight  to  be  carried  is  outgrowing  the 
strength.  This  demands  effort,  and  increase  of  expense 
out  of  proportion  to  the  result.  The  surfaces  of  the 
internal  organs  of  the  body  can  hardly  be  keeping  pace 
in  their  growth  with  the  mass  of  the  body,  though  of 
1  See  Vierordt,  Daten  und  Tabellen,  p.  284. 


160  GROWTH  AND   EDUCATION 

this  we  are  not  quite  certain.  Hence,  relatively  less 
food  and  oxygen  are  absorbed,  and  the  waste  is  less 
rapidly  and  thoroughly  removed.  Finally  the  process 
of  readjustment  is  always  very  expensive  of  material 
and  of  nervous  energy.  All  these  causes  of  increase  of 
expense  and  of  relative  decrease  of  income  would  be 
true  and  effective,  if  the  internal  organs  were  gaining 
in  size  and  weight  as  rapidly  as  the  mass  of  the  rest  of 
the  body.    But  this  is  not  the  case. 

The  food  and  oxygen  must  be  furnished,  and  the 
waste  removed,  by  the  organs  in  the  trunk.  The  in- 
crease in  the  size  of  the  trunk  must  be  proportional  to 
their  growth.  But  we  have  seen  that  the  chest-girth  was 
fifty-four  per  cent  of  the  standing-height  at  six,  and  now 
is  hardly  fifty  per  cent.  Between  six  and  twelve  the  dis- 
tance between  hip  and  armpit  is  increasing  only  one 
half  as  fast  as  between  three  and  six,  or  as  during  the 
latter  half  of  the  next  epoch.  The  ratio  of  sitting-  to 
standing-height  is  lower  than  during  any  other  epoch, 
except  for  a  time  at  the  beginning  of  the  next.  If  both 
girth  and  length  of  trunk  are  relatively  low,  the  ca- 
pacity of  the  trunk  must  be  small,  and  the  efficiency 
of  the  internal  organs  more  or  less  diminished.  These 
ratios  will  improve  at  fourteen,  and  again  at  sixteen,  in 
the  boy,  and  a  year  or  more  earlier  in  the  girl.  But 
during  this  closing  period  of  accelerated  growth  in  legs 
and  arms,  the  ratio  of  income  to  expenses,  the  relation 
between  production  and  removal  of  waste,  has  been 
badly  disturbed. 

Similar  ratios  in  the  adult  would  be  symptoms  of 
weakness,  if  not  of  disease.  Great  stature  is  usually 
due  to  great  length  of  legs.  Tall  people  usually  have 
relatively  short  trunks.    Dr.  Baxter  found  the  smallest 


IN  THE  GRAMMAR  GRADES  161 

percentage  of  men  unfit  for  military  service  among 
those  one  or  more  inches  below  the  average  height. 
The  percentage  was  largest  in  the  case  of  the  tallest. 
We  have  seen  that  small  men  with  long  bodies  and 
relatively  short  legs  are  usually  considered  to  have  the 
greatest  endurance.  A  chest-girth  less  than  one  half  of 
the  standing-height  is  a  discouraging  sign.  Small  weight 
relative  to  stature  is  always  unfavorable.  Yet  all  these 
unfavorable  signs  characterize  this  period.  They  must 
characterize  it,  for  the  growth  in  the  length  of  leg  and 
arm  has  lasted  long,  and  must  now  be  hastened  to  give 
place  to  other  processes. 

Increase  in  height  and  greater  length  of  leg  generally 
characterizes  the  more  favored  classes.  This  may  be  due 
to  better  food  and  surroimdings.  In  so  far  it  is  prob- 
ably a  sign  of  better  health.  It  may  be  one  of  the  weak- 
nesses which  come  with  higher  civilization.  Dr.  Baxter's 
observations  favor  the  second  explanation.  But  this 
question  remains  open.  The  fact  of  their  greater  height 
remains,  whatever  be  its  cause.  The  greater  growth  of 
the  legs  enhances  for  them  the  difficulties  and  disad- 
vantages of  this  epoch.  Hence  we  should  not  be  sur- 
prised to  find  that  this  epoch  was  more  likely  to  be 
one  of  weakness  among  the  children  of  professional  and 
business  classes  than  among  those  of  the  laborers. 
\i  We  should  not  confuse  an  apparently  normal,  though 
marked,  increase  in  height  with  those  cases  where, 
through  disease  or  other  causes,  the  increase  of  the 
length  of  the  bones  becomes  pathological,  as  is  some- 
times the  case  with  poorly  nourished  individuals  of 
weak  inheritance.  Here  it  is  possible  that  another 
explanation  may  come  nearer  to  the  truth.  In  castrated 
individuals,    whether   men   or    animals,    the    legs    are 


162  GROWTH  AND  EDUCATION 

usually  longer  than  in  the  normal.  It  has  been  in- 
ferred that  the  maturing  of  the  reproductive  system 
puts  an  end  to  their  growth.  If  through  weakness,  or 
any  cause  of  such  sterility,  the  reproductive  system  fails 
fully  to  mature,  the  increase  in  length  of  the  bones  may 
continue  abnormally.  There  may  well  be  a  series  of 
intermediate  stages  between  such  evidently  pathological 
cases  and  those  where  luxury,  idleness,  weakness  of  con- 
stitution, or  poverty  and  want  among  the  poor,  have 
hampered  or  prevented  the  full  development  of  the 
reproductive  organs.  We  are  here  brought  face  to 
face  with  a  series  of  important  and  exceedingly  difficult 
problems. 

A  year  of  slow  growth  and  the  beginning  of  the  ac- 
celeration of  growth  in  height  usher  in  the  critical 
period  of  puberty.  Now  comes  a  metamorphosis  almost 
as  marked  as  the  change  of  the  caterpillar  into  the  but- 
terfly. Every  organ  in  the  body  is  more  or  less  modi- 
fied. The  changes  in  the  girl  are  probably  more  pro- 
found than  in  the  boy.  They  occur  earlier,  before  we 
expect  them.  They  are  accomplished  in  a  briefer  time, 
and  hence  are  more  hurried.  Her  pubertal  period  is 
more  likely  to  be  stormy,  and  her  rate  of  morbidity  is 
higher. 

Her  future  health  and  happiness,  if  not  her  life,  de- 
pend upon  the  successful  accomplishment  of  this  meta- 
morphosis during  the  trying  period  of  rapid  increase  in 
height.  Slight  injuries  or  defects,  now  easily  remedied, 
niay  result  in  temporary  or  permanent  weakness  or 
invalidism,  if  neglected. 

We  must  not  forget  that  she  is  now  making  her  final 
preparations  for  Nature's  second  and  most  searching 
physical    examination.    Almost   anything    else   except 


IN  THE  GRAMMAR  GRADES  163 

readiness  for  this  test  can  be  postponed  or  even  neg- 
lected without  irremediable  loss.  But  failure  to  meet 
Nature's  requirements  means  ruin,  and  a  low  mark 
means  lifelong  disabilities,  if  not  weariness  and  pain. 
The  test  will  soon  be  applied  once  for  all,  and  must  be 
final.'  There  is  no  appeal  from  the  verdict,  and  no  for- 
giveness for  those  who  even  ignorantly  have  sinned 
against  Nature's  laws. 

We  have  compared  the  changes  at  puberty  to  the 
metamorphosis  of  the  butterfly.  This  is  far  more  than 
a  mere  analogy.  The  changes  are  comparable,  but  in 
the  butterfly  they  are  written  large.  We  can  learn  some 
valuable  lessons  from  a  caterpillar.  During  its  larval 
stage  its  whole  business  is  to  store  up  material  for  its 
metamorphosis.  If  it  fails  in  this,  it  dies ;  or  a  sadly 
weak  and  defective  butterfly  emerges  from  the  cocoon. 
Similarly  in  the  child  the  years  before  ten  furnish  the 
golden  opportunity  to  store  up  material  and  vitality 
against  the  lean  years  of  puberty.  If  this  opportunity 
be  neglected  or  only  half-used,  it  never  returns.  We 
should  utilize  it  to  the  utmost. 

But  much  remains  to  be  done  after  ten.  The  rapid 
growth,  the  readjustments,  and  the  profound  changes 
in  all  the  organs  involve  much  destruction  of  material 
and  waste  of  tissue.  If  this  waste  is  not  removed,  it 
poisons  the  blood,  hampers  all  the  functions,  depresses 
the  nervous  system,  and  produces  disinclination  to  ex- 
ercise or  effort.  Headache,  loss  of  appetite,  pallor, 
nervousness,  and  general  weakness  follow.  In  Sweden 
from  the  twelfth  year  the  rate  of  morbidity  did  not  fall 
below  sixty  per  cent  until  the  nineteenth  in  girls.  In 
Denmark  it  was  forty  per  cent  or  more.  For  the  boy 
it  was  between  thirty  and  forty  per  cent  in  both  coun- 


164  GROWTH  AND  EDUCATION 

tries.  Schmid-Monnard  has  called  attention  to  the  fact 
that  the  greater  amount  of  morbidity  among  girls  at 
this  epoch  is  due  almost  entirely  to  poverty  of  blood 
and  to  disorders  which  result  directly  from  this.  He 
tells  us  farther  that  this  difference  between  the  sexes 
is  first  noticeable  at  seven  or  eight.  The  deterioration 
begins  much  earlier  than  we  suspect.  The  condition  of 
the  blood  must  be  due  to  one  or  both  of  two  causes, 
accumulation  of  waste  material,  or  deterioration  through 
loss  of  appetite  or  decrease  of  digestive  and  assimilative 
powers.  The  second  condition  is  almost  a  necessary 
result  of  the  first. 

It  would  be  very  strange  if  such  a  condition  of  the 
blood  and  whole  organism  should  not  be  attended  by 
decreased  power  of  resistance  to  fatal  diseases.  These 
diseases  may  not  culminate  in  death  until  years  later. 
But  it  seems  not  at  all  improbable  that  this  is  the  time 
when  they  gain  entrance  into  and  foothold  in  the 
system.  When  we  read  the  last  chapter  of  Havelock 
Ellis's  "Man  and  Woman,"  we  learn  that  the  woman 
is  really  tougher  and  has  more  vitality  than  the  man. 
We  begin  to  wonder  whether  the  same  should  not  be 
true  of  the  girl  compared  with  the  boy. 

Burgerstein  *  tells  us  that  in  Sweden  and  Finland 
between  1755  and  1805  the  mortality  of  males  was 
greater  than  that  of  females,  at  all  ages.  Between  1816 
and  1855  exceptions  to  this  rule  begin  to  appear.  Be- 
tween 1856  and  1870  mortality  of  females  was  greater 
in  most  of  the  pubertal  years.  Between  1871  and  1880 
the  mortality  of  females  was  greater  at  all  ages  between 
twelve  and  sixteen.  In  Boston,  according  to  Dr.  Hart- 
well,  between  1875  and  1890  the  death-rate  of  girls  was 

1  Burgeratein  and  Netolitzky,  Handbuch  der  Schulhygiene,  p.  506. 


IN   THE  GRAMMAR  GRADES  165 

higher  than  that  of  boys  at  all  ages  from  thirteen  to 
eighteen  inclusive,  except  in  the  seventeenth  year.  In 
Berlin  the  death-rate  varies,  being  sometimes  higher 
among  the  girls,  sometimes  among  the  boys. 

Consumption  is  a  disease  which  gains  a  foothold  when 
the  body  is  weakened,  and  which  is  repulsed  or  driven 
out  by  open-air  life,  abundance  of  exercise,  of  nourish- 
ing food  and  of  sleep.  We  have  already  quoted  Sir 
Crichton  Brown  concerning  the  prevalence  of  consump- 
tion among  the  more  cultivated  and  highly  educated 
young  women  of  England.  He  tells  us  that  after  the 
age  of  thirty-five  more  men  than  women  die  of  this  dis- 
ease. Between  twenty  and  thirty-five  the  numbers  are 
almost  equal.  Between  five  and  twenty  far  more  girls 
than  boys  die  from  this  cause,  and  that  their  death- 
rate  between  fifteen  and  twenty  is  three  times  as  great 
as  that  of  boys.  What  few  figures  I  have  been  able  to 
find  are  not  really  comparable  to  those  of  the  English 
physician.  They  lead  me  to  hope  that  the  ratio  in 
America  is  slightly  more  favorable.  We  can  only  hope 
that  some  of  our  physicians  will  furnish  us  an  answer 
to  these  and  other  vital  questions  of  preventive  medi- 
cine. 

Miss  Foster,  in  her  summary  of  the  results  of  a  study 
of  the  physique  of  college  women,  says  :  "All  the  meas- 
ures which  are  determined  in  early  life  are  good  —  the 
college  girl  had  the  favorable  conditions  of  the  i  leisure ' 
class.  The  legs,  which  get  a  certain  amount  of  exercise 
inevitably,  are  good  in  bone-measure,  but  muscularly 
a  little  below  par.  The  upper  limb  has  been  delayed  in 
growth,  and  girth-measures  of  bone  and  muscle  both 
are  deficient.    Why  ?  I  think  it  is  fair  to  say,  because 

1  Hertel,  Overpressure,  Introduction.   See  p.  yyy, 


166  GROWTH  AND   EDUCATION 

the  brain  has  been  developed  at  the  expense  of  the  body 
during  the  last  years  of  school  life." 

Our  facts  and  figures  are,  perhaps,  too  few  to  demon- 
strate anything.  But  they  furnish  food  for  thought,  and 
certainly  lead  to  the  suspicion,  at  least,  that  our  modern 
civilization  and  education  are  bearing  harder  upon  the 
girl  than  upon  the  boy.  Even  if  the  increase  of  disease 
and  the  higher  death-rate  is  not  due  to  conditions  but 
to  the  constitution  of  the  girl  during  this  epoch,  it  is 
clear  that  every  precaution  should  be  taken  to  avoid 
crowding  and  harassing  during  this  time  of  weakness. 

Let  us  return  to  undeniable  facts.  The  great  changes 
in  the  body  have  increased  the  amount  of  waste  in  the 
blood,  and  this  waste  must  be  rapidly  and  steadily  re- 
moved by  organs  in  an  undersized  trunk.  It  is  a  second 
fact  that  the  waste  will  not  be  removed  until  it  has  been 
thoroughly  oxidized  by  an  abundant  supply  of  air  ab- 
sorbed by  the  blood  at  the  lungs.  Hence  the  great  im- 
portance of  a  large  lung  capacity.  Whether  the  average 
for  the  boy  is  as  large  as  it  should  be  and  might  be  is 
very  doubtful.    It  is  certainly  not  excessive. 

The  girl  throughout  this  epoch  is  somewhat  taller 
and  heavier  than  the  boy  of  the  same  age.  She  needs 
as  much  oxygen  as  he,  or  even  more.  The  average  girl 
at  this  period  has  for  each  pound  of  weight  hardly  more 
than  three  fourths  of  the  vital  capacity  of  the  boy  of 
the  same  age.  But  the  woman  between  twenty  and 
thirty  has  also  about  the  same  ratio.  This  in  the  case 
of  the  latter  is  due  to  her  smaller  waste  and  great 
economy  of  material.  We  do  not  yet  know  whether 
her  small  adult  vital  capacity  is  a  natural  characteristic, 
or  in  part,  at  least,  a  result  of  wrong  conditions  and 
habits  of  life.    Most  adult  women  lead  a  sedentary  life, 


IN  THE   GRAMMAR  GRADES  167 

and  take  far  less  muscular  exercise  than  is  for  their 
good.  Their  health  "  flies  out  through  the  nerves " 
faster  than  it  can  "come  in  through  the  muscles." 

The  best  way  to  solve  the  question  whether  the  girl 
during  this  period  needs  a  larger  vital  capacity  is  to 
notice  the  result  of  moderate  exercise  at  each  age.  As 
long  as  she  responds  promptly  and  markedly  to  simple 
exercises,  we  may  be  sure  that  it  is  needed  and  that 
the  increase  is  entirely  normal,  natural,  and  beneficent. 

Dr.  Anderson's  measurements  of  vital  capacity  were 
taken  from  girls  in  a  school  in  the  city  of  New  York 
where  gymnastics  formed  a  part  of  the  daily  course  of 
work.  We  may  well  compare  them  with  Hastings's 
figures  for  Nebraska  school-girls.  The  New  York  girl 
at  six  had  very  small  lungs,  only  four  fifths  as  large  as 
those  of  the  Western  girl  of  the  same  age.  At  seven 
and  eight  she  hardly  keeps  pace  with  her  Western  sister. 
Play  and  life  in  the  open  air  of  the  country  can  furnish 
adequate  and  suitable  exercise  during  these  years.  But 
at  nine  and  ten  her  percentile  increase  is  more  than 
twice  as  great.  There  is  an  acceleration  at  eleven  in- 
stead of  a  retardation,  as  in  Nebraska.  At  twelve  and 
fourteen  she  has  one  third  more  lung  capacity.  Dr. 
Anderson's  measurements  stop  at  fifteen.  We  do  not 
know  whether  the  superiority  was  fully  maintained  in 
later  years.  But  the  girl  responded  to  exercise  promptly 
and  most  efficiently,  and  had  the  increased  capacity 
during  her  years  of  greatest  need.  This  one  experiment 
has  almost  the  value  of  a  mathematical  demonstration 
of  the  girl's  needs  and  possibilities. 

There  is  a  noticeable  difference  between  the  tables 
of  lung  capacity  for  boys  and  girls.  In  the  boy  we  are 
very  rarely  disappointed  in  an  accelerated  increase  at 


168  GROWTH  AND   EDUCATION 

fourteen,  then  a  year  of  comparative  rest  followed  by  a 
still  more  marked  increase  at  sixteen.  The  accelerations 
may,  of  course,  come  a  year  earlier  or  later.  But  in  the 
case  of  girls  the  figures  are  very  irregular.  We  can 
find  no  special  periods  of  acceleration  and  retardation 
which  remain  constant  in  different  localities.  This  in 
itself  arouses  the  suspicion  that  bad  conditions  are  ham- 
pering her  development  far  more  than  that  of  the  boy. 
We  may  judge  from  Anderson's  figures  that  her  period 
of  acceleration  would  probably  come  early,  perhaps  even 
at  nine  and  eleven.  But  we  must  bear  in  mind  the  pre- 
cocity of  the  city  girl,  especially  in  the  higher  classes. 
Very  possibly  the  acceleration  would  come  a  year  or 
two  later  in  the  country  population. 
V  Evidently  the  girl  sadly  needs  the  larger  vital  ca- 
pacity, and  gains  it  when  she  has  the  opportunity  for 
suitable  exercise.  Gilbert1  observed  that  dull  pupils 
have  a  smaller  lung  capacity  than  bright  ones  at  all 
ages  during  the  pubertal  period.  He  thinks  that  his 
measurements  for  other  ages  give  only  negative  results. 
But  when  we  notice  the  irregularities  due  to  the  small 
number  of  observations  and  make  allowances  for  these, 
it  would  seem  to  be  probably  true  of  all  ages.  Increased 
vital  capacity  might  prove  beneficial  to  the  mental  as 
well  as  to  the  physical  well-being  of  many  weak  and 
backward  boys  and  girls  at  this  time. 

The  oxidization  and  removal  of  waste,  as  well  as  the 
increased  vital  capacity,  is  best  attained  by  abundant 
and  free  open-air  play,  though  where  this  is  impossible, 
the  gymnasium  must  make  good  the  lack.  Such  exer- 
cise is  essential  to  stimulate  the  healthy  growth  and 

1  Researches  on  Mental  and   Physical  Development   of  School  Chil- 
dren. 


IN  THE   GRAMMAR  GRADES  169 

action  of  the  heart  and  all  the  vital  organs,  and  to 
maintain  the  appetite  and  assimilative  powers. 

About  this  time  the  girl's  brother  joins  a  baseball 
nine,  and  she  frequently  ceases  her  outdoor  games 
altogether.  Sometimes  she  still  plays  a  game  of  tag  or 
some  other  running  game,  but  is  usually  ashamed  of 
these  relics  of  childhood.  She  is  very  fortunate  if  she  is 
not  continually  reminded  by  mother,  teacher,  or  friend 
that  running,  jumping,  and  romping  are  more  befitting 
to  a  tom-boy  than  to  a  young  lady.  A  word  to  the  in- 
experienced as  well  as  to  the  wise  is  often  sufficient. 
She  gives  up  the  play  habit,  and  forgets  the  art,  just 
when  she  needs  them  most. 

Miss  Hill,  of  the  Department  of  Physical  Training 
at  Wellesley  College,  once  said  :  "  The  most  helpless 
people  I  have  ever  seen  have  been  college  girls  when 
I  have  first  taken  them  into  the  gymnasium  and  told 
them  to  play.  They  seemed  to  have  forgotten,  or  never 
to  have  truly  learned."  We  hope  that  the  college 
woman  of  to-day  has  improved  in  this  respect,  but  there 
is  every  reason  to  fear  that  the  girls  in  our  grammar 
and  high  schools  have  not.  The  man  or  woman  who 
would  discover  or  invent  an  attractive  game  furnishing 
suitable  and  convenient  exercise  to  girls  of  these  grades 
would  be  one  of  the  greatest  public  benefactors. 

Lack  of  oxygen  and  deterioration  of  the  blood  often 
disinclines  the  girl  to  the  open  air  and  exercise  which 
she  most  needs.  In  many  families  her  services  out  of 
school  hours  are  needed  to  relieve  the  already  over- 
burdened mother.  Yet  in  these  same  families  the  boy 
is  often  excused  from  all  care  of  his  own  room  and  is 
allowed  to  leave  it  in  chaos  for  his  sister  to  "  put  to 
rights  "  for  him.    This  is  a  decidedly  unfair  division  of 


170  GROWTH   AND   EDUCATION 

labor.  It  is  the  lightest  work  which  she  can  do  list- 
lessly, and  over  which  she  can  consume  a  large  amount 
of  time  with  little  or  no  muscular  effort,  which  does 
her  the  most  harm.  Of  such  work  the  boy  should  and 
could  do  his  share. 

Life  is  dull  and  she  craves  diversion  and  amusement. 
The  temptation  is  great  still  farther  to  exhaust  eyes 
and  brain  by  lolling  on  the  sofa  or  over  the  furnace 
register  and  reading  trashy  novels.  In  the  worst  cases 
the  disorders  become  so  deeply  rooted  that  it  is  almost 
or  quite  impossible  to  eradicate  them.  A  longer  or 
shorter  period  of  invalidism,  perhaps  permanent  weak- 
ness or  death,  at  nineteen  or  twenty,  is  the  natural 
result. 

The  critical  period  in  the  girl's  life  is  evidently  be- 
tween ten  and  fifteen,  earlier  than  most  of  us  think. 
The  time  to  begin  to  take  precautions  is  several  years 
earlier,  at  seven  or  eight.  Most  of  our  care  and  thought 
goes  to  "  locking  the  stable  door  after  the  horse  has 
been  stolen."  Everybody  is  intensely  interested  in  the 
health  of  the  young  college  woman.  This  is  as  it  should 
be.  Few  seem  to  think  that  the  health  of  the  girl  in 
the  grammar  grades  demands  any  care  or  attention. 
There  could  hardly  be  a  worse  or  more  dangerous  mis- 
take. 

It  is  not  a  period  of  immediate  danger  nor  one  of  great 
essential  and  unavoidable  weakness ;  although  it  is  one 
of  diminished  vigor,  and  requiring  care,  attention,  and 
hygienic  conditions.  Open  air,  sunshine,  good  food  and 
cheer,  and  abundant  sleep  are  the  best  tonics.  Suitable 
gymnastics  are  very  useful  or  positively  necessary.  But, 
to  be  effective,  they  should  occur  more  frequently  than 
two  half-hours  each  week.    This  is  about  as  useful  as 


IN  THE  GRAMMAR  GRADES  171 

to  prescribe  two  fair  meals  a  week  as  a  cure  for  lean- 
ness. Idleness  is  neither  necessary  nor  beneficial.  The 
higher  mental  powers  are  developing  and  craving  exer- 
cise. The  boy  and  girl  are  drawing  inferences  and 
making  distinctions.  A  reasonable  amount  of  school 
work  will  promote  both  mental  and  physical  health 
and  growth.  But  overpressure,  confinement  in  hot,  ill- 
ventilated  rooms,  long  sitting  without  change  of  posture, 
needless  fret  and  worry  should  be  most  carefully 
avoided. 

The  girl  is  in  the  last  years  of  the  grammar  school 
or  in  the  first  year  of  the  high  school.  She  is  inter- 
ested in  her  work  and  ambitious.  She  may  have  inher- 
ited from  her  mother  an  old-fashioned  New  England 
conscience.  She  does  not  intend  to  be  left  behind  in 
any  social,  literary,  or  other  competition,  into  which  she 
has  entered  spontaneously  or  otherwise.  Very  possibly 
she  is  looking  forward  to  that  relic  of  barbarism,  the 
examination  for  entrance  to  the  high  school. 

She  may  be  preparing  for  college.  The  school  has 
a  reputation  to  sustain,  and  the  public  demands  that 
it  satisfy  the  requirements  of  the  college  for  admission. 
Whether  these  requirements  are  reasonable  or  not,  the 
docile  public  does  not  ask.  Perhaps,  like  Gallio,  it 
"  cares  for  none  of  these  things."  The  success  of  most 
of  our  high-school  teachers  is  estimated  and  graded 
according  to  the  entrance  mark  or  the  standing  of  the 
girl  in  her  college  studies.  Some  of  them,  both  male 
and  female,  are  exquisite  products  of  the  culture  of  our 
higher  centres  of  learning.  They  revel  in  Latin  pro- 
sody, or  in  higher  mathematics.  They  can  tithe  the  intel- 
lectual mint,  anise,  and  cummin,  with  balances  so  fine 
that  they  turn  under  the  shadow  of  a  hair  from  the 


172  GROWTH   AND   EDUCATION 

beard  of  the  prophet  or  critic.  They  never  studied 
physiology  or  hygiene,  and  consider  such  subjects  as 
unworthy  of  their  attention.  Red  blood  is  at  a  discount 
in  their  valuation.  The  care  of  the  girl's  health  is  not 
their  business. 

But  an  overwhelming  majority  of  our  teachers  ap- 
preciate the  value  of  health  and  the  need  of  mercy,  and 
would  gladly  give  the  girl  a  chance,  if  the  public  would 
only  allow  them  to  do  so.  They  are  all  well  aware  of 
one  fact :  that  the  parents  who  have  criticised  them 
most  severely  for  crowding  the  girl  will  be  the  first  to 
demand  their  discharge  if  she  fails  to  pass  her  exam- 
inations for  entrance  to  college.  They  are  quite  right 
in  this  thought.  They  all  wish  her  to  carry  off  honors 
in  their  own  special  departments.  Every  one  demands 
all  the  time  and  effort  she  can  secure.  If  the  pupil  is 
exceptionally  bright  and  vigorous,  she  will  endure  the 
strain  without  evident  injury.  Whether  it  is  too  great 
for  good  and  profit  is  quite  another  question.  If  she 
happens  to  have  a  year  or  two  at  this  time  when  for 
lack  of  oxygen  or  for  some  other  reason  her  brain  re- 
fuses to  do  its  utmost,  she  is  conditioned  in  some  study. 
The  school  rightly  and  mercifully  refuses  to  allow  her 
to  carry  an  extra  study  the  next  year  and  thus  to  make 
it  up.  But  the  father  and  mother  besiege  the  superin- 
tendent, and  the  girl  is  finally  allowed  to  add  it  to  the 
burden  under  which  she  is  already  struggling. 

The  teachers  in  our  women's  colleges  are  learned, 
intelligent,  very  highly  cultured,  and  ambitious.  They 
have  been  eager  to  prove  that  the  average  woman  has 
more  intellectual  ability  than  any  man.  This  question 
any  man  of  any  experience  will  unhesitatingly  and 
emphatically  answer  in  the  affirmative  without  the  evi- 


IN  THE  GRAMMAR  GRADES  173 

dence  of  a  college  diploma  or  degree  of  Ph.D.  Every 
alumna  is  quick  and  proud  to  claim  that  her  institution 
has  a  far  higher  standard  of  scholarship  than  any- 
other.  Easy  admission  in  any  study  would  be  a  dis- 
grace. The  colleges  are  crowded,  and  teachers  and 
alumnae  fear  that  a  slightly  lower  standard  will  attract 
to  them  the  ill-prepared,  inefficient,  or  incapable.  News 
goes  abroad  that  some  college  has  raised  the  standard 
of  admission  in  some  subject;  every  other  college  ac- 
cepts the  rumor,  and  follows  the  example.  It  is  claimed 
that  the  requirements  of  our  best  women's  colleges  are 
fully  equal  to,  or  higher  than,  those  of  Harvard.  Still 
they  rise.  How  high  will  they  be  ten  years  hence?  The 
college  has  no  means  of  knowing  how  many  fall  by  the 
way.  These  in  no  way  affect  it.  The  standard  is  main- 
tained, and  that  is  the  great  desideratum. 

The  pressure  extends  farther  back  in  the  course  than 
some  of  us  have  suspected.  Latin  is  usually  begun  in 
the  first  year  of  the  high  school,  or  sometimes  in  the 
grammar  grade.  Physical  training  can  wait ;  but  Latin 
must  be  begun  early,  and  the  foundations  must  be 
deeply  and  thoroughly  laid.  The  high-school  years  are 
already  full  to  overflowing.  There  is  a  widespread 
opinion  that  the  first  year  in  the  high  school  is  the 
hardest  in  the  whole  course.  It  certainly  is  anything 
but  easy.  Furthermore,  work  which  was  formerly  done 
in  the  high  school  must  now  be  done  earlier,  and  the 
steadily  increasing  pressure  crowds  farther  and  farther 
back  into  the  lower  grades.  The  study  must  be  pur- 
sued, not  when  it  is  most  profitable,  but  as  early  as 
possible  in  order  that  its  completion  may  make  room 
for  something  else.  The  pressure  affects  not  only  the 
girl  who  is  fitting  for  college,  but  all  her  associates.    In 


174  GROWTH   AND   EDUCATION 

our  smaller  schools  separate  courses  and  classes  cannot 
be  provided  for  those  going  to  college.  All  must  move 
on  together  in  lock-step. 

About  this  time  the  parents  usually  awaken  to  the 
fact  or  hypothesis  that  the  girl  has  great  talents  for 
music,  drawing,  or  painting.  They  add  a  few  or  a  good 
many  hours  to  the  week's  work.  There  is  little  or  no 
time  left  for  outdoor  exercise  or  play.  The  girl  begins 
to  look  pale  and  tired.  She  evidently  needs  rest  and 
recreation.  Therefore  she  is  allowed  or  encouraged  to 
go  to  parties  or  dances  lasting  into  the  wee  small  hours. 
It  is  an  excellent  method  of  girl  homicide,  not  always  as 
painless  in  the  end  as  it  looks. 

The  average  American  woman  ought  to  be  unusually 
healthy.  The  toughest,  sturdiest,  and  strongest  of  the 
European  populations  were  sifted  out  to  plant  America. 
We  can  live  for  some  generations  on  the  store  of  vital- 
ity bequeathed  by  our  ancestors.  We  are  certainly 
drawing  very  freely  on  our  heritage,  if  we  are  not  actu- 
ally squandering  it.  We  can  exhaust  it.  Says  Dr. 
Engelmann  in  a  most  careful  and  painstaking  discussion 
of  this  subject :  "  We  must  admit  that  the  condition  of 
the  American  girl  is  not  what  it  should  be  under  the 
unusually  favorable  conditions  of  her  life,  or  which  is 
justly  hers  by  the  splendid  heritage  of  health  to  which 
she  is  entitled.  The  younger  the  girl,  the  nearer  the 
period  of  puberty,  the  more  impressionable  the  system, 
the  more  susceptible  to  influences  for  good  or  evil ;  and 
most  harm  is  wrought  in  the  first  year  of  functional 
life.  The  majority  of  those  who,  after  the  high-school 
period,  enter  upon  physical  work,  date  their  suffering 
to  the  fourteenth  year,  that  is,  during  school  life."  * 
1  "  The  American  Girl  of  To-day,"  Am.  Phys.  Ed.  Eev.  1901. 


IN  THE  GRAMMAR  GRADES  175 

It  is  important  that  the  pubertal  metamorphosis 
should  be  postponed  as  long  as  possible.  The  devel- 
opment of  the  girl  is  too  crowded.  Anything  which 
hastens  its  coming  should  be  carefully  avoided.  It  comes 
earlier  in  the  city  than  in  the  country,  about  a  year 
earlier  in  girls  of  high  schools,  normal  schools,  and  those 
fitting  for  college,  than  in  the  laboring  classes.  Hence 
all  that  tends  to  nervous  strain  or  excitement  should  be 
as  far  as  possible  avoided  or  mitigated  before  as  well  as 
during  this  epoch. 

Our  system  of  education  has  been  framed  by  adults 
for  adults.  Our  school  boards  have  mostly  forgotten,  if 
they  ever  knew,  that  puberty  is  a  period  requiring  care, 
attention,  and  some  mercy.  The  influence  of  the  entrance 
requirements  for  college  has  been  often  unfortunate  in 
the  case  of  both  boys  and  girls.  The  teacher  is  fre- 
quently prevented  from  showing  the  leniency  which  she 
would  gladly  exercise.  She  is  frequently  crowded  by  a 
public  proud  of  the  defects  of  its  school  system,  to  say 
nothing  of  boards  of  examination  and  of  certificates,  etc., 
etc. 

We  need  teachers  with  clear  and  watchful  eyes,  who 
can  lighten  worry,  fret,  and  weariness;  and  can  see 
when  leniency  is  needed  and  when  firmness  is  kindness  ; 
who  know  when  not  to  notice  a  bad  error  or  recitation, 
or  even  day's  work  ;  who  can  pass  over  or  advise  a  day's 
absence  from  school  now  and  then.  Enough  knowledge 
of  physiology  to  enable  her  to  persuade  the  girl  that  wet 
feet  or  damp  skirts  are  very  dangerous  at  this  period, 
will  certainly  do  her  no  harm.  We  need  wise  and 
sympathetic  teachers ;  but  we  need  equally  or  more  a 
public  sufficiently  educated  to  appreciate  and  support 
them  in  their  efforts.    At  present  we  are  more  likely  to 


176  GROWTH  AND   EDUCATION 

blame  them  for  that  which  they  cannot  and  we  will  not 
change. 

At  all  cost  the  school  should  provide  for  play,  exer- 
cise, and  recreation.  The  single  session  lasting  contin- 
uously too  many  hours  and  postponing,  if  not  destroying, 
the  midday  meal,  is  anything  but  hygienic.  The  recesses 
should  be  lengthened,  and  pauses  for  rest  and  change 
of  position  should  be  allowed  between  class  exercises. 
More  place  must  be  found  for  all  forms  of  physical 
training.  In  some  way  the  blood  must  be  drawn  from 
the  brain  to  the  muscles,  the  life-savers  and  accumulators 
of  health  and  strength  for  the  body. 

But  puberty  demands  care  and  hygienic  treatment 
in  the  home  even  more,  if  possible,  than  in  the  school. 
Here  the  responsibility  rests  mainly  upon  the  mother, 
though  the  father  might  well  spare  a  moment  or  two 
from  the  more  important  pursuit  of  wealth  and  reputa- 
tion to  give  a  thought  to  the  health  of  his  children. 

Until  the  menses  are  thoroughly  established,  and 
occur  with  regularity,  the  girl  should  have  almost  com- 
plete rest  whenever  they  occur.  Possibilities  of  chill 
through  damp  feet  or  skirts,  or  exposure  to  cold,  should 
be  carefully  avoided.  The  girl  should  be  kept  cheer- 
ful, and  all  fear  of  or  shame  at  this  natural  process 
should  be  removed.  This  is  a  time  when  the  "  ounce  of 
prevention  is  worth  more  than  a  pound  of  cure."  Here, 
too,  especially  the  wise  mother  will  seek  the  advice  of 
the  experienced  physician  before  it  is  necessary  rather 
than  afterward. 

Throughout  puberty  mental  hygiene  is  as  important 
as  physical.  The  nervous  system  shares  the  weakened 
condition  of  the  whole  body.  It  is  liable  to  be  disturbed 
by  any  disorder  of  function.    The  strain  of  accommoda- 


IN  THE  GRAMMAR  GRADES  177 

tion  to  new  conditions,  of  arranging  a  new  distribution 
of  nutriment  in  the  body,  of  receiving  and  controlling 
a  host  of  new  impulses  from  within  and  from  without, 
falls  heavily  upon  it.  Every  period  of  transition  is  one 
of-  greater  or  less  nervous  instability.  This  nervous 
instability,  amounting  often  to  irritability,  frequently 
manifesting  itself  in  stuttering,  sometimes  in  hysteria, 
is  very  evident  at  this  great  transition.  "  Sweet  reason- 
ableness" cannot  always  be  expected. 

Hence  cheerful  surroundings  at  home  and  abroad  are 
of  the  greatest  possible  benefit.  A  bright  young  girl 
once  said :  "I  am  well  enough,  if  people  do  not  ask 
me  about  it."  The  attention  should  be  kept  on  bright 
subjects  of  thought,  not  on  symptoms  of  weakness.  It 
is  not  the  best  time  for  self-examination  or  for  cultiva- 
tion of  the  conscience.  A  nervous,  nagging  mother  and 
an  irritable  father,  precisely  those  whose  children  are 
most  likely  to  show  signs  of  nervous  weakness  at  this 
period,  can  work  great  and  irremediable  mischief.  They 
would  best  send  the  girl  to  a  calm,  cheery  grandmother 
or  to  the  right  school. 

Cheerful  parents  and  friends  who  know  the  beauty 
of  God  and  His  world,  who  see  and  dwell  in  the  bright 
side  of  life,  who  are  watchful  without  showing  it,  and 
hopeful  at  all  times,  are  the  best  possible  tonics  for  the 
nervous  system  and  the  whole  body,  as  well  as  soul. 

What  has  been  said  of  the  girl  applies  to  the  boy  to 
a  somewhat  less  extent.  Puberty  begins  a  year  later 
with  him.  The  year  of  retardation  usually  falls  at 
eleven.  The  period  lasts  two  years  longer.  It  is  thus 
less  crowded  and  hurried.  The  changes  are  slower  and 
more  gradual,  and  hence  there  is  less  morbidity.  He  is 
usually  blessed  with  more  obtuse  nerves,  and  great  per- 


178  GROWTH  AND  EDUCATION 

severance  in  the  avoidance  of  overwork.  He  will  generally 
manage  to  have  his  outdoor  sports,  whatever  happens. 
Hence  he  maintains  a  larger  lung  capacity,  and  suffers 
far  less  from  anaemia  and  its  consequences.  But  there 
are  far  too  many  exceptions  to  this  rule.  There  are  the 
shy,  the  sedentary,  the  studious,  boys.  There  are  boys  of 
delicate  constitution  and  of  hereditary  weakness.  There 
are  many  boys  who  are  more  or  less  weak  nervously, 
especially  during  this  period.  All  these  need  care  and 
attention.  In  all  cases  it  is  the  critical  period  of  least 
vigor.  Let  us  not  grudge  even  the  strongest  their 
freedom  and  sports.  Let  us  not  neglect  their  physical 
training.  There  is  no  danger  that  they  will  amass  more 
health  and  vigor  than  they  will  need  in  adult  life.  The 
boy  has  his  tests  and  ordeals  to  face.  His  death-rate  at 
nineteen  and  twenty  is  higher  than  that  of  the  girl. 
Watchfulness,  care,  and  a  grain  of  mercy  will  help  him 
as  really  as  the  girl.   Both  need  help  and  sympathy. 


CHAPTER  XIII 

THE    BOY   AND   THE    GIRL    IN   THE   HIGH    SCHOOL 

During  the  last  years  of  the  high-school  course  we 
are  dealing  with  adolescents.  The  characteristics  of 
this  period  appear  more  clearly  when  the  youth  is  sent 
away  from  home  to  enjoy  the  greater  freedom  of  the 
academy,  or  at  a  slightly  later  age  in  early  college  life. 
But  signs  of  their  coming  are  already  plain,  and  we 
may  well  consider  the  years  for  which  the  high-school 
course  is  preparing,  and  to  which  it  furnishes  the  trans- 
ition. In  this  chapter  we  shall  consider  the  boy  espe- 
cially. But  most  of  what  is  true  of  him  will  probably 
apply  fairly  well  to  the  girl  also. 

The  girl  at  sixteen  has  usually  attained  her  full 
height,  and  practically  her  adult  weight;  although 
weight  in  both  sexes  should  increase  slowly  until  into 
adult  life.  The  boy  has  somewhat  still  to  gain  in  both 
respects.  The  lungs  of  the  boy  have  increased  in  capac- 
ity very  markedly  at  fourteen  and  sixteen.  In  the  girl 
the  increase  is  less  marked  and  regular.  In  both  sexes 
the  heart,  which  was  small  before  and  during  early 
puberty,  has  gained  greatly  in  capacity.  Its  increase 
during  these  years  may  amount  to  one  hundred  cubic 
centimeters,  or  even  more,  a  gain  of  sixty  per  cent. 
In  the  boy  the  increase  is  usually  somewhat  slow  and 
gradual,  in  the  girl  it  occupies  a  shorter  period,  some- 
times only  two  or  three  years.    But  sometimes  the  in- 


^ 
V 


180  GROWTH  AND   EDUCATION 

crease  is  delayed  for  one  or  more  years.  In  this  increase 
much  new  material  is  necessarily  added  to  the  walls  of 
the  heart,  which  require  a  considerably  longer  time  to 
attain  the  strength  and  endurance  of  full  maturity.  The 
arteries  have  expanded  less  than  the  heart,  hence  the 
blood-pressure  has  risen.  The  higher  pressure  and  bet- 
ter oxidization  of  the  blood  lead  to  a  rapid  combustion 
in  the  muscles,  and  especially  in  the  brain  ;  all  the  more 
as  the  waste  products  of  growth  and  readjustment  are 
not  poured  into  the  blood  in  nearly  as  large  quantities 
as  during  puberty.  The  machine  should  now  be  in 
"  smooth  working  order." 

The  brain  has  attained  practically  its  full  size  and 
weight.  The  later  additions  are  mainly  in  the  associa- 
tion areas,  where  a  few  more  grams  of  substance,  de- 
veloped just  where  it  is  most  efficient,  may  add  vastly 
to  the  mental  power.  The  sensory  and  motor  areas  are 
fully  matured.  Improvement  is  now  to  be  expected 
mainly  in  quickness  and  precision  of  movement,  and  in 
complexity  of  action  of  the  finer  muscles  of  wrist,  hand, 
and  fingers. 

The  higher  mental  areas  are  in  a  stage  when  a  goodly 
amount  of  exercise  will  do  them  no  harm.  The  logical 
powers  are  increasing  fast.  They  crave  exercise,  and 
the  boy  often  argues  quite  as  much  from  the  love  of 
debate  as  from  the  desire  to  attain  truth.  It  is  doubt- 
ful whether  the  memory  is  either  as  quick  or  retentive 
as  during  earlier  years.  Mortality  is  still  low,  but  is 
gradually  rising.  Morbidity  should  decrease,  and  usu- 
ally does  so  in  the  boy  for  a  year  or  two.  In  the  girl 
it  frequently  remains  high  continually  until  after  cessa- 
tion of  growth,  when  it  reaches  its  second  maximum  in 
both  sexes. 


IN  THE  HIGH   SCHOOL  181 

It  is  difficult  to  decide  just  how  much  of  the  disorder 
at  this  second  maximum  is  avoidable.  Growth  after 
fourteen  or  fifteen  in  the  boy,  and  from  an  earlier  age 
in  the  girl,  tends  more  and  more  to  increase  of  girth. 
It  is  more  in  the  trunk,  and  less  and  less  in  the  length 
of  legs  and  arms.  It  is  less  disturbing,  and  adds  more 
to  the  size  of  the  vital  organs.  The  body  is .  returning 
toward  the  healthy  proportions  of  childhood.  It  cer- 
tainly seems  as  if  the  high  rates  of  morbidity  at  seven- 
teen or  later  in  the  statistics  of  the  schools  of  Sweden 
and  Denmark  should  be  lowered.  But  at  best  the  last 
years  of  academy  and  high  school  and  the  first  year  of 
college  life  are  likely  to  be  years  of  much  morbidity. 
The  health  of  pupils  during  these  years  will  always 
require  attention.  After  this  time  morbidity  ought  to 
show  a  rapid  decline.  We  may  feel  sure  also  that  pro- 
per care  and  exercise  during  the  early  years  of  the  high- 
school  course  would  delay  and  mitigate  its  rise  and 
hasten  its  fall. 

Vigorous  physical  exercise  is  still  needed,  and  can 
do  only  good.  The  muscles  are  ready  for  their  final 
training.  Play  is  not  enough.  Gymnastics  are  needed 
for  the  development  of  the  finer  muscles  and  the  higher 
motor  centres,  and  for  the  correction  of  faults  and  de- 
fects which  have  outlasted  or  come  with  puberty.  Their 
hygienic  value  also  ought  not  to  be  underestimated. 
Still  we  must  fortify  and  strengthen  the  youth  against 
the  diseases  which  cause  the  rise  of  death-rate  at  nine- 
teen and  later.  Nature's  second  examination  has  not 
yet  been  passed. 

Athletics  are  exceedingly  useful.  The  boy  should  be 
allowed  and  encouraged  to  test  his  strength  against  that 
of  his  fellows.    They  should  be  arranged  and  controlled 


182  GROWTH   AND  EDUCATION 

so  as  to  engage  those  who  most  need  them  as  well  as 
the  few  strongest  who  need  them  least.  We  must  re- 
member also  that  the  heart  is  still  weak  and  easily- 
strained.  Century  runs  with  the  bicycle  and  long  halves 
at  football  should  be  carefully  avoided.  Precocity 
of  prowess  or  distinction  in  athletics  is  likely  to  re- 
sult in  staleness  or  weakness  in  later  life.  We  should 
not  forget  this  fact  which  was  discovered  and  men- 
tioned by  Aristotle  of  the  contestants  in  the  Greek 
games. 

The  boy  and  girl  feel  the  rising  tides  of  strength  and 
vigor,  and  imagine  that  they  have  even  more  strength 
and  endurance  than  the  adult.  But  they  are  still  far 
from  the  toughness  of  later  years,  when  the  tissues  have 
gradually  matured  and  hardened.  Every  commander  of 
an  army  has  recognized  the  high  rates  of  sickness  and 
death  among  young  recruits  during  hard  campaigns, 
especially  in  unhealthy  and  severe  foreign  climates. 
Now  the  hard  bed  with  light  coverings  in  the  cool  or 
cold  room,  and  the  cold  bath  followed  by  a  few  mo- 
ments of  vigorous  exercise  and  hard  rubbing  will  help 
the  toughening  process  in  the  healthy  boy.  A  less 
severe  but  similar  regimen  would  remove  the  hot-house 
delicacy  of  some  of  our  girls.  But  the  hardening  pro- 
cess should  be  most  carefully  and  watchfully  managed 
in  those  who  need  it  most,  and  the  advice  of  a  wise 
physician  may  be  invaluable  in  many  cases.  The  dan- 
ger from  overpressure  in  study  is  probably  not  so  great 
as  in  lower  grades.  The  same  laws  of  growth  and  de- 
velopment still  apply.  The  athletic  brain,  like  athletic 
muscles,  is  best  attained  by  frequent  periods  of  vigor- 
ous exercise  alternating  with  those  of  rest.  Still  the 
girl  should  be  allowed  to  change  her  position,  and  call 


IN  THE   HIGH  SCHOOL  183 

the  blood  from  the  loaded  brain  to  the  cold  hands  and 
feet.  Both  boy  and  girl  will  study  better  for  filling 
their  lungs  with  cool  fresh  air  every  hour  or  so. 

The  greatest  danger  is  from  too  much  and  too  in- 
tense social  life.  Excitement  is  always  fatiguing,  if  not 
exhausting,  to  the  young.  The  late  hours  and  loss  of 
sleep  rob  the  body  of  strength  even  faster  than  severe 
study.  Whether  the  last  years  of  the  high-school  course 
are  too  crowded  for  the  best  and  most  healthy  mental 
development  of  our  boys  and  girls  is  a  quite  different 
question.  This  can  be  answered  only  by  experienced 
observers. 

The  attainment  of  full  growth  and  of  large  muscular 
power,  the  large  heart  and  lungs,  the  well  oxygenated 
blood  driven  at  high  pressure,  the  activity  and  young 
vitality  of  all  the  tissues  and  organs,  give  buoyancy 
and  courage,  a  sense  of  power  and  a  longing  for  entire 
freedom,  a  revolt  against  control.  A  new  world  has 
opened  before  the  boy  as  fresh  and  fair  as  on  the 
morning  of  creation.  The  joy  of  mere  living  dawns 
upon  him.  He  looks  out  upon  a  fair  new  life  bound- 
less in  opportunity  and  endless  in  scope  and  time. 
He  sees  parents  and  teachers  plodding  in  a  humdrum 
round.  He  hears  their  criticisms  or  complaints.  He 
is  sure  that  they  cannot  understand  him,  and  that 
they  know  very  little  of  the  glories  of  life  and  of  this 
exceedingly  good  world.  He  is  right  to  a  certain  extent. 
Young  adults  usually  have  the  poorest  opinion  of  life 
and  the  world.  They  furnish  the  reformers  and  the 
pessimists.  This  is  perhaps  unavoidable,  possibly  use- 
ful. But  when  with  the  boy  we  must  overflow  with 
hope  and  courage. 

He  will  gird  his  loins  and  go  whither  he  will.    He 


184  GROWTH   AND   EDUCATION 

must  taste  of  every  experience  for  himself,  and  is  will- 
ing to  meet  both  joy  and  sorrow  with  "  frolic  welcome." 
He  would  eat  of  the  tree  of  knowledge  of  good  and  evil, 
though  it  should  cost  him  paradise.  He  has  not  yet 
been  saddened  by  experience  or  disillusioned  by  failure 
and  disappointment. 

Nature  is  now  loosing  her  leading-strings.  She  is 
setting  him  free  to  complete  his  peculiar  individual  de- 
velopment, and  to  forge  his  own  character.  We  cannot 
stop  him  if  we  would,  we  should  not  if  we  could.  In 
old  times  the  adolescent  ran  away  to  sea,  now  we  send 
him  to  school  and  college.  Here,  beyond  the  reach  of 
well-meaning  neighbors  and  friends,  he  tries  the  ex- 
periment of  life  ;  makes  his  blunders  ;  experiences  suc- 
cess and  failure,  joy  and  sorrow ;  finds  himself,  his 
strength  and  weakness  ;  and  grows  into  a  man. 

Authority  has  only  a  superficial  hold  upon  him, 
tradition  far  less.  Only  the  influences  of  home-training, 
which  have  rooted  themselves  deep  in  his  subconscious 
life,  are  still  powerful.  He  has  not  yet  gained  self- 
knowledge  or  self-control.  Much  of  the  child  still  lingers 
in  him.  Impulses  well  up  from  every  change  in  his  phys- 
ical constitution  or  condition ;  he  knows  not  whence  they 
come  or  how  to  meet  them.  He  does  not  know  his  real 
strength,  much  less  his  weakness.  He  is  very  loyal  to 
his  associates,  as  is  shown  by  his  group  games,  his  class 
or  society  feeling,  and  his  school  or  college  spirit.  He 
cannot  stand  alone.  Individual  judgment  and  con- 
science are  developing  very  slowly.  To  understand  him 
and  his  actions  under  certain  conditions  you  must  have 
studied  the  psychology  of  the  mob.  Instability  often 
seems  to  be  his  most  marked  characteristic. 

He  is  a  mixture  of  contradictions,  an  enigma  to  him- 


IN  THE   HIGH   SCHOOL  185 

self  and  to  us.  He  might  well  say :  "  My  name  is  Le- 
gion, for  we  are  many."  In  the  ferment  of  young  life 
all  that  is  trifling  and  worthless  comes  to  the  surface, 
the  strong  and  sweet  lie  beneath  the  froth.  We  may 
very  easily  do  him  injustice.  If  we  cannot  understand 
him  and  sympathize  with  him,  if  we  have  totally  forgot- 
ten our  own  experiments  and  blunders,  we  should  send 
him  to  those  who  can  do  so  or  leave  him  to  Nature. 
Forty  years  ago  the  Union  was  saved  by  an  army  of 
boys. 

His  conceptions  of  the  meaning  and  value  of  time 
are  hardly  clearer  than  those  of  a  child.  He  cannot 
play  a  waiting  game.  If  the  sun  shines  to-day,  it  will 
always  remain  cloudless;  if  the  maid  of  his  adoration 
has  frowned,  she  will  never  smile  again.  He  lives  on 
the  Delectable  Mountains  or  in  the  depths  of  the  Val- 
ley of  Humiliation,  more  frequently  in  the  latter  region 
than  we  suspect.  He  betrays  all  his  conceit,  and  can- 
not help  it;  his  humiliation  over  his  blunders,  failures, 
and  sins,  he  keeps  to  himself.  Nature  puts  a  shell 
around  the  chicken  embryo  to  keep  out  intruders  dur- 
ing the  period  of  embryonic  development.  She  puts 
a  similar  shell  around  the  boy  during  this  epoch  in  his 
development.  He  becomes  reticent.  He  will  not  and 
cannot  share  his  thoughts  with  us  ;  that  confidence  is 
reserved  for  friends  of  his  own  age.  It  is  on  the  whole 
best  that  it  should  be  so  to  a  large  extent.  Our  clumsy 
fingers  might  spoil  the  process.  He  must  fight  his  own 
battles.    We  must  respect  his  reticence. 

Let  us  look  a  little  deeper.  The  boy  is  loyal  to  his 
friends,  often  generous  to  a  fault.  It  is  the  epoch  of 
the  reign,  not  of  cold  judgment,  but  of  feeling  and 
of  the  heart,  "  out  of  which  are  the  issues  of  life."  Paul 


186  GROWTH  AND   EDUCATION 

places  love,  with  faith  and  hope,  far  above  knowledge ; 
which  "  vanisheth  away,  for  we  know  in  part."  Per- 
haps Paul  was  right,  after  all.  The  heart  is  often  fully 
as  wise  as  the  head.  Feelings  are  racial,  the  results  of 
generations  or  ages  of  natural  selection  and  survival 
of  the  fittest,  while  opinions  are  individual  and  but  of 
a  day.  Do  not  undervalue  or  curb  too  closely  his  gener- 
ous impulses.  The  world  will  teach  him  selfishness  fast 
enough. 

He  has  a  strange  and  crude  system  of  ethics,  appar- 
ently a  survival  of  some  remote  period  of  barbarous 
life.  But  he  is  usually  true  to  it.  Make  the  most  of 
all  the  good  there  is  in  it,  and  the  imperfect  and  un- 
couth will  in  time  be  outgrown  and  disappear.  Deal 
honestly  and  squarely  with  him,  and  the  harder  you 
apply  curb  or  spur  the  better  he  will  like  you  in  the 
end.  But  "be  strong  and  of  good  courage";  it  is  not 
a  time  for  half  measures.  He  is  searching  for  a  leader, 
and  usually,  like  St.  Christopher,  he  will  follow  the 
strongest.  But  even  this  crude  desire  will  in  time  lead 
him  to  his  king. 

Tides  of  religious  thought  and  tendency  sweep  through 
his  soul.  The  first  may  have  come  at  twelve  or  even 
earlier,  and  is  often  weak  and  sometimes  seems  to  pass 
without  permanent  effect.  A  second  frequently  follows 
at  fourteen,  stronger  but  largely  emotional.  The  wave 
at  sixteen  or  somewhat  later  moves  feeling,  intellect, 
and  will.  Or  his  religious  growth  and  development  may 
be  slow,  gradual,  and  steady,  with  no  marked  crises. 
We  must  take  advantage  of  the  tides,  and  be  watchful 
after  every  ebb.  We  may  probably  be  more  grateful 
for  the  slow  and  steady  growth.  But  in  whatever  mode 
or  form  the  growth  comes,  it  is  the  most  important 


IN  THE  HIGH  SCHOOL  187 

change  in  his  life.  Nothing  else  can  so  steady  him 
through  this  period  of  instability  and  cause  it  to  result 
in  a  strong  character. 

The  only  religion  which  will  appeal  to  him  is  one  of 
heroism,  endurance,  and  of  powerful,  lofty,  and  master- 
ful personality.  His  king  must  be  presented  to  his 
mind  as  stronger  as  well  as  better  than  he,  and  as  alto- 
gether worthy  of  his  unswerving  loyalty,  obedience,  and 
service.    He  will  have  no  other. 

The  mental  metamorphosis  at  adolescence  is  just  as 
profound  as  the  physical  at  puberty.  All  things  are  be- 
coming new.  His  thoughts  and  conceptions,  standpoints 
and  views,  judgments  and  inferences,  all  the  attain- 
ments of  childhood  are  resolved  and  crystallize  anew. 
The  form  which  they  now  assume  will  probably  be  per- 
manent. It  must  be  a  time  of  instability,  of  surprises, 
and  of  contradictions.  Perhaps  you  see  only  the  be- 
ginnings of  the  process.  But  the  preparation  and  begin- 
ning largely  determine  the  final  result. 

It  is  the  period  of  promise  in  the  life  of  the  boy  and 
girl.  It  is  often  our  privilege  to  catch  a  glimpse  of 
these  promises  afar  off,  before  they  are  suspected  by 
parents  or  friends.  Youth  is  a  period  of  seeing  visions 
and  of  dreaming  dreams.  There  are  endless  possibilities 
in  these  dim  visions.  Mr.  Phillips  said  that  the  power 
which  hurled  slavery  from  its  throne  was  young  men 
dreaming  dreams  by  patriots'  graves.  I  imagine  that 
he  would  have  acknowledged  that  a  few  living  patriots 
might  vivify  the  dream  without  disturbing  it.  The  all- 
important  question  now  is,  Can  the  promise  be  made 
good,  and  the  visions  realized,  or  will  they  fade  and 
disappear,  leaving  him  a  philistine  or  something  worse  ? 
The  dream  has  now  more  substance  and  value  than  all 


188  GROWTH   AND   EDUCATION 

the  rules  of  prosody,  propositions  of  mathematics,  or 
facts  of  anatomy. 

Socrates  said  that  his  business  was  that  of  a  midwife 
to  bring  great  ideas  to  birth.  Adolescence  is  the  second 
birth,  when  the  real  man  is  born  into  the  world.  The 
business  of  the  teacher  is  to  bring  to  birth  high  aims 
and  ideals,  strong  purposes,  a  vigorous  spiritual  life. 
To  some  these  phrases  may  sound  obsolete.  They  are 
hard  to  define,  and  harder  of  realization.  But  if  there 
is  any  high-school  teacher  who  cannot  feel  that  they 
have  any  power  and  substance,  to  whom  they  are  alto- 
gether meaningless  or  hazy,  there  is  one  thing  for  him 
to  do.  Let  him  retire  to  some  great  institution  of  learn- 
ing, write  a  very  large  book  on  some  useless  subject, 
as  far  as  possible  from  life.  He  may  win  renown  as 
a  lecturer  at  some  great  university.  He  is  not  big  and 
deep  enough  to  teach  in  a  college  or  high  school.  These 
are  institutions  of  power  as  well  as  of  learning.  They 
must  be  like  fertile  Phthia,  "mothers  of  heroes." 

The  formal  education  of  most  boys  and  girls  ends 
with  the  high  school.  Now  he  parts  with  his  teachers. 
They  must  send  him  out  into  life  with  a  powerful  im- 
petus toward  all  that  is  grand  and  lofty  and  difficult  in 
art,  literature,  science,  morals,  and  religion.  Where  one 
pupil  goes  to  college  five  or  ten  will  go  directly  into 
life.  The  high  school  is,  and  must  be,  essentially  the 
people's  college.  It  prepares  the  boy  for  life.  The 
boy  and  girl  are  asking  us :  What  is  this  great  world 
and  glorious  life?  What  are  its  meaning  and  laws? 
How  can  I  prepare  for  it  ?  What  opportunities  must  I 
seize  vigorously  and  at  once  ?  What  are  the  great  dan- 
gers which  await  me  ?  They  are  really  asking  for  bread 
without  which  their  hungry   souls   will  dwindle  and 


IN   THE   HIGH  SCHOOL  189 

starve.  If  we  respond  merely  with  rules  of  prosody, 
problems  of  mathematics  and  dead  facts  of  science,  it 
seems  to  me  that  we  are  giving  them  a  stone,  or  at  best 
very  dry  and  innutritious  husks.  The  time  for  the 
mere  memorizing  of  rules,  with  little  or  no  regard  for 
the  absence  or  presence  of  any  vital  content,  is  past, 
provided  it  ever  was.  The  over-exercise  of  the  memory 
now  clogs  instead  of  stimulating  the  mind.  The  boy 
and  girl  are  eager  to  think  and  discover  concerning  the 
most  important  problems  of  life. 

Much  depends  upon  the  subject,  but  more  upon  the 
aim  and  method  of  the  teacher.  Classical  literature  and 
ancient  history  teem  with  life  and  vitality.  But  much 
of  our  drill  and  routine  is  admirably  fitted  to  com- 
pletely sterilize  them.  "  Beauty,"  said  Plato,  "  is  the 
splendor  of  truth."  We  have  no  right  to  rob  truth  of 
its  splendor.  Even  mathematics  and  modern  languages 
are  alive  when  taught  by  some  teachers.  Nature-study 
once  consisted  largely  in  counting  the  number  of  joints 
in  the  legs  or  antennae  of  a  dead  grasshopper.  It  is  not 
wonderful  that  nature-study  of  that  sort  was  neither 
interesting  nor  profitable.  There  are  other  methods  in 
other  studies  which  are  equally  dead  and  deadening, 
and  which  might  advantageously  be  buried.  If  our 
knowledge  is  to  stick  and  be  remembered,  it  must  in 
some  way  be  made  easy  of  assimilation  to  the  little 
hoard  of  knowledge  of  life  which  our  pupils  are  accu- 
mulating with  all  the  greed  of  a  miser.  I  fear  that  our 
system  of  education  is  not  as  wise  as  their  instinctive 
craving.  And  the  high-school  teacher  is  by  no  means 
a  "  sinner  above  all  the  dwellers  in  Jerusalem." 

Whatever  be  the  subject,  our  teachers  will  gain  greatly 
by  forgetting,  as  far  as  possible,  that  bane  of  education, 


190  GROWTH  AND   EDUCATION 

the  entrance  examination  for  college.  After  all  possible 
arguments  in  its  defense,  it  still  remains  true  that  this 
examination  is  the  strongest  possible  incentive  to  the 
memorizing  of  words,  rules,  exceptions,  and  other  dis- 
connected facts.  The  cramming  process  is  the  foe  of 
genuine  thinking.  The  colleges  and  universities  have 
wisely  broadened  the  field  of  studies  which  will  prepare 
for  entrance.  They  will  broaden  it  still  more.  The 
amount  of  material  which  mast  be  learned  or  surveyed 
as  a  preparation  may  be,  and  probably  is,  larger  than 
the  schools  can  handle  in  the  time  at  their  disposal 
consistently  with  the  best  mental  growth  and  disci- 
pline. A  smaller  amount,  more  thoroughly  studied  and 
thought  out,  would  very  probably  give  better  results. 
Knowledge  is  the  food  of  the  mind.  The  chief  question 
is,  not  how  much  we  can  consume  and  cause  to  disap- 
pear, but  how  much  and  how  thoroughly  we  can  digest 
and  assimilate.  But  these  questions  also  belong  to 
experts.    By  experts  we  mean  men  of  experience. 

The  colleges  are  fast  learning  that  they  may  well 
trust  the  method  of  preparation  to  those  who  have  had 
experience  with  young  and  immature  minds,  and  that 
there  is  no  one  course  of  study  which  is  best  for  all. 
The  captains  of  athletic  teams  have  learned  that  one 
athlete  might  be  trained  on  the  farm,  and  another  in  a 
city  gymnasium.  The  chief  question  is,  Has  the  young 
man  the  stuff  and  the  power  in  him?  not,  How  or 
where  did  he  get  it  ?  The  high  school  in  the  East  will 
enjoy  all  the  freedom  of  those  in  the  West,  possibly 
even  more.  It  will  frame  its  own  course  of  study,  suited 
to  the  needs  of  the  overwhelming  majority  of  its  own 
students.  It  will  train  and  develop  according  to  the 
dictates  of  experience,  not  merely  and  entirely  accord- 


IN  THE  HIGH   SCHOOL  191 

ing  to  the  best  theories  based  on  the  psychology  of  the 
adult  mind.  The  aim  of  the  training  will  no  longer  be 
merely  the  largest  possible  amount  of  learning  and  in- 
tellectual discipline,  but  growth  and  development  of  all 
the  powers,  grasp,  and  efficiency,  a  large  and  full  life. 
When  they  have  attained  these,  learning  will  come  al- 
most of  itself.  Thus  the  high  school  will  accomplish 
its  chief  end  and  purpose  ;  and  the  college  will  receive 
stronger,  keener,  more  vigorous  and  earnest,  better 
developed  and  hence  better  prepared  students.  This 
change  is  coming  fast,  and  is  steadily  gaining  momen- 
tum. It  will  go  far  to  solve  the  question  why  so  many 
fail  or  do  not  care  to  reach  the  high  school.  It  will 
draw  to  the  teaching  profession  the  young  blood  and 
enthusiasm,  the  brawn  and  brain,  the  power  and  effi- 
ciency, which  are  so  much  needed. 

Perhaps  we  are  teaching  literature  :  some  great  poem, 
or  thrilling  oration,  or  a  description  of  matchless  power 
and  beauty.  We  can  make  it  our  first  aim  to  have  our 
pupils  look  up  every  reference.  They  will  learn  much 
botany,  archaeology,  astronomy,  and  other  useful  and 
useless  bits  of  information,  which  they  will  probably 
commit  to  their  note-books  and  promptly  forget.  In 
my  younger  days  we  used  Milton's  "  Paradise  Lost " 
as  material  for  the  study  of  analysis.  "  Complex  ad- 
verbial modifiers  "  of  various  classes  infest  our  day  no 
longer,  but  our  aversion  to  Milton  did  not  lose  its  hold 
so  easily.  It  never  seemed  quite  fair  to  Milton  to  use  his 
grand  poem  for  such  a  purpose,  although  I  believe  that 
his  reputation  has  not  suffered  greatly  from  the  abuse. 
But  it  harmed  us  all,  and  robbed  some  of  us  of  our 
birthright. 

We  can  show  our  classes  the  times  and  conditions 


192  GROWTH  AND  EDUCATION 

under  which  a  poem  arose.  They  will  learn  a  certain 
amount  of  history,  which  may  be  very  valuable.  We 
may  teach  them  to  paraphrase  the  poem,  and  they  may 
gain  a  little  power  and  fluency  in  the  use  of  English 
words  and  phrases  from  its  mangled  remains.  The  so- 
called  translation  of  Latin  or  Greek  often  amounts  to 
much  the  same  thing.  After  translation  the  thought 
and  soul  are  frequently  lost  somewhere  between  Heaven 
and  Hell,  probably  somewhat  nearer  the  latter  than 
the  former. 

The  rule  of  the  zoologist,  that  the  animal  should  be 
observed  and  studied  alive  as  carefully  and  thoroughly 
as  possible  before  you  kill  and  dissect  it,  holds  good 
in  literature  also.  The  pupils  should  feel  some  of  the 
movement,  power,  and  life  of  the  poem  before  they  pro- 
ceed to  destroy  all  this  by  their  dissection,  analysis,  and 
rules  of  prosody  and  grammar.  We  wish,  first  of  all, 
that  they  should  enter  into  its  spirit,  find  in  it  an  in- 
spiration which  they  cannot  analyze  or  express,  discover 
a  beauty  and  a  "  light  which  never  was  on  sea  or  land." 
They  may  not  understand  it ;  it  is  enough  if  they  have 
felt  it.  The  power  and  beauty  have  penetrated  far 
deeper  than  the  intellect,  they  have  seized  upon  the 
imagination,  won  the  heart,  interfused  and  transfigured 
the  whole  being.    Now  we  are  teaching  literature. 

The  eye  is  the  window  of  the  intellect,  but  the  ear  is 
the  doorway  to  the  heart  and  soul.  Do  we  make  enough 
use  of  this  method  of  approach  in  studies  which  ought 
to  lift  and  inspire  ?  A  passage  familiar  to  the  eye  often 
comes  to  us  with  new  and  marvelous  power  or  beauty, 
when  read  sympathetically  by  another.  English  was 
intended  to  be  a  spoken  as  well  as  a  written  language. 

In  thus  teaching  literature  we  have  done  something 


v 


IN  THE  HIGH  SCHOOL  193 

far  better  than  merely  to  give  literary  instruction.  We 
have  awakened  a  new  and  life-giving  interest  which  oth- 
erwise would  have  remained  dormant  and  have  died.  In 
teaching  children  we  had  to  follow  their  interests  very 
largely,  but  we  can  lead  and  inspire  the  adolescent  to 
share  our  best  enthusiasms.  The  enthusiasm  or  interest 
may  be  immortal  while  the  instruction  is  usually  soon 
forgotten.  All  the  information  which  we  can  give  will 
soon  be  crowded  out  of  the  mind  by  the  cares,  thoughts, 
and  pursuits  of  adult  life.  But  the  pupil  who  has  felt 
the  power  and  beauty  of  one  grand  poem  will  never 
again  be  quite  content  with  poor  aud  low  literature. 
Some  of  them  will  demand  the  very  best.  But  if  Mil- 
ton's lines  are  only  material  for  analysis,  and  Homer 
is  only  a  peg  for  rules  of  grammar,  where  is  the  inspira- 
tion to  come  in  ? 

We  have  neither  time  nor  place  to  consider  other 
studies  and  branches  of  education.  The  methods  and 
courses  of  the  high  school  of  to-day  are  vastly  better 
than  they  were  or  could  be  twenty-five  years  ago.  But 
even  now  in  the  effort  to  give  abundant  instruction  are 
we  not  laying  too  little  emphasis  on  the  supreme  import- 
ance of  awakening  new  and  lasting  interests,  inspira- 
tions, and  enthusiasms? 

Is  even  the  development  of  a  literary,  historic,  or  sci- 
entific taste  the  chief  end  of  the  high  school  ?  Is  there 
something  still  higher,  better  suited  to  adolescent  needs  ? 
I  believe  that  we  will  agree  that  the  greatest  human 
need  is  complete  devotion  to  the  highest  moral  and 
religious  ideals ;  and  that  character  is  formed  early,  at 
least  in  tendency.  It  usually  does  not  change  essen- 
tially after  the  youth  is  twenty  years  old.  It  will 
improve,  grow,  and  strengthen  ;  but  the  growth  will  be 


194  GROWTH  AND   EDUCATION 

along  lines  already  marked.  In  one  word  character  is 
formed  in  the  high  school,  and  this  is  its  period  of  most 
rapid  development. 

Whoever  wishes  to  develop  a  strong  character  must 
go  deeper  than  the  intellect,  must  mould  the  feelings 
and  reach  the  will.  We  must  arouse  purpose  as  well  as 
enthusiasm.  Somehow  we  must  train  the  unstable  boy 
and  girl  to  steadfastness  and  perseverance,  to  self-con- 
trol, to  prolonged  and  effective  effort.  This  is  the  essen- 
tial, crucial,  and  often  baffling,  problem  of  the  teacher 
in  the  high  school  and  during  the  first  years  in  college. 
We  work  in  the  dark,  and  have  few  or  no  means  of 
judging  of  the  degree  of  success  or  failure  attending  our 
efforts.  Another's  will  is  not  our  province,  and  we  enter 
it  only  by  permission  or  unnoticed.  Forcible  invasion 
and  conquest  are  out  of  the  question.  Will  training  is 
exceedingly  slow  and  difficult,  and  requires  inexhaust- 
ible faith  and  patience,  as  well  as  sympathy,  insight, 
and  skill.    Yet  somehow  we  must  solve  the  problem. 

You  can  form  character  through  literature.  You  can- 
not spend  an  evening  with  charming  Miss  Esther  Sum- 
merson  or  with  fine  old  Colonel  Newcome,  and  not  be 
kindlier  and  more  courteous,  more,  brave  and  enduring. 
We  can  make  history  a  dreary  chronicle  of  dates  and 
battles,  or  through  it  we  can  introduce  our  pupils  to  the 
heroes  of  all  the  ages.  We  can  make  it  another  eleventh 
chapter  of  Hebrews.  If  we  tell  of  Gideon  and  Barak, 
of  Washington  and  Lincoln,  of  prophets,  apostles,  and 
martyrs  ;  if  we  saturate  our  pupils  with  the  character 
of  such  men  and  women,  have  we  not  already  trained  a 
race  of  heroes  ?  We  are  to  see  to  it  that  the  ideal  does 
not  become  the  object  of  a  mere  idle  sentimental  wor- 
ship, but  the  goal  of  strenuous  and  long-continued  effort. 


IN  THE  HIGH  SCHOOL  195 

We  must  therefore  keep  before  them  the  example  of 
men  and  women  who,  through  much  tribulation,  have 
realized  their  ideals.  Says  Mr.  Martineau,  "  We  shall 
never  have  a  proper  system  of  education  until  we  have 
a  properly  written  '  Lives  of  the  Saints.'  " 

We  must  train  our  boys  and  girls  to  walk  the  streets 
and  to  live  in  the  world's  Prytaneum  with  heroes  and 
heroines.  Can  we  not  find  an  hour  somewhere  in  the 
course  to  read  to  them  Plato's  "  Apology  "  or  the  "  Crito  "  ? 
Let  them  sit  with  Socrates  in  his  prison  and  listen  to 
his  discourse  until  the  voice  of  the  Laws  "rings  in  their 
ears  like  the  clang  of  the  cymbals  of  the  Corybants,  and 
they  can  hear  nothing  else."  Let  them  return  once  more 
and  watch  the  sun  sink  over  against  the  same  prison 
and  hear  the  last  words  of  the  old  hero  and  sage  as  he 
bids  his  follower  not  fail  to  offer  the  sacrifice  of  thanks- 
giving due  to  the  god  of  healing.  W^e  can  not  only 
awaken  a  new  interest,  we  can  arouse  a  higher  life. 

This  power  of  arousing  the  divine  life  immanent  in 
every  human  soul  is  the  essential  characteristic  and  cri- 
terion of  every  great  teacher,  prophet,  and  moral  leader 
of  all  time.  Read  Alcibiades'  tribute  to  the  teaching  of 
Socrates.  Its  seat  is  in  the  depths  of  personality; 
it  defies  alike  analysis  and  resistance.  It  leaps  from 
soul  to  soul  as  if  by  contagion.  Heroism  evoked  by 
hero-worship  is  the  central  thought  of  all  history 
from  Gideon  and  his  three  hundred  to  Sheridan  at  Win- 
chester changing  a  fleeing  mob  into  an  army  of  heroes. 
Virtue  streams  out  from  strong  characters  like  electric- 
ity from  a  dynamo.  \  Character  cannot  be  taught,  but 
it  is  exceedingly  infectious ;  and  good  is  more  infectious 
than  evil.  If  we  amount  to  anything,  we  are  sources  of 
infection  whether  we  will  or  not. 


196  GROWTH   AND  EDUCATION 

Hence  courses,  training,  methods,  and  instruction 
all  together  are  of  far  less  importance  than  the  per- 
sonality of  the  teacher.  The  "  everlasting  miracle " 
which  Kipling's  Sergeant  What-is-name  worked  when 
"  He  drilled  a  black  man  white,  he  made  a  mummy 
fight,"  l  is  the  final  secret  and  essence  of  education. 
The  chief  use  of  school  and  college  is  to  bring  pupil 
and  teacher  near  enough  together  so  that  the  miracle 
will  work  itself.  If  we  teachers  are  good  for  anything, 
we  are  putting  into  our  pupils  something  better  than 
our  life-blood.  We  must  be  healthy  in  mind  and  body, 
or  we  cannot  be  strong;  and  strength  streams  only 
from  the  strong.  We  must  be  sympathetic,  for  sym- 
pathy is  the  cable  along  which  the  magnetic  power  of 
personality  flows.  With  children  we  must  be  a  child, 
and  a  boy  with  the  boys.  Otherwise  the  bond  is  broken 
or  never  formed. 

We  must  be  patient,  hopeful,  and  courageous,  else 
the  child  or  man  will  not  trust  us,  and  will  have  none 
of  us.  Evidently  we  must  catch  this  personality  from 
some  one  else,  and  can  transmit  only  what  we  have 
received.  No  one  of  us  is  quite  big  enough  to  fill  the 
place  assigned  to  him.  Hence  a  teacher  who  does  not 
believe  with  all  her  heart  in  the  communion  of  saints 
will  never  be  a  real  educator,  however  much  Greek  or 
History  she  may  know,  or  however  firm  and  wise  her 
discipline.  We  must  live  in  constant  association  with 
the  best  and  noblest  souls.  We  can  easily  find  them 
among  our  immediate  neighbors,  if  we  search  aright ; 
if  not,  we  must  seek  them  in  literature  and  history. 
We  must  gain  admittance  to  what  Heine  has  called 
"  the  apostolic  succession  of  great  souls,  the  only  people 

1  "  Pharaoh  and  the  Sergeant,"  McClure's  Magazine,  vol.  ix. 


IN  THE  HIGH  SCHOOL  197 

who  understand  anything  in  the  world."  And  we  must 
change  into  their  image.  We  are  called  to  the  very- 
grandest  of  all  professions.  We  cannot  be  sufficiently 
proud  of  our  calling,  or  sufficiently  humbled  by  the 
smallness  of  our  attainments  or  accomplishments.  We 
make  the  state  or  commonwealth  of  the  twentieth  cen- 
tury. We  are  doing  something  still  bigger  and  better. 
We  work  for  the  development  of  the  race.  We  mould 
it  into  conformity  with  what  is  deepest  and  most  per- 
manent in  environment.  Hence  all  the  powers  of  Nature 
are  with  us.  We  cast  in  our  efforts  with  the  irresistible 
tide  of  events  as  it  sweeps  on  toward  a  better  age.  Let 
us  "be  strong  and  of  a  very  good  courage." 


CHAPTER  XIV 

PHYSICAL   TRAINING  —  THE   PLACE   OF   PLAY   IN 
EDUCATION 

Growth  is  periodic  and  by  parts.  Each  organ  and 
system  has  a  stage  when  growth  and  development  de- 
pend upon  exercise.  This  is  true  of  different  parts  of 
the  brain  as  well  as  of  other  organs.  We  have  seen 
that  our  business  is  to  discover  what  organ  is  growing 
rapidly  and  most  needs  exercise  at  each  epoch,  and  to 
give  that  organ  the  kind  and  amount  of  exercise  which 
it  needs.  The  need  is  manifested  by  a  craving  or  in- 
terest, which  is  as  natural,  physiological,  and  reliable, 
as  hunger  or  thirst. 

The  foundation  of  a  house  must  be  laid  before  the 
superstructure  can  be  added.  Nature  cannot  build  the 
complex  human  body  by  allowing  all  organs  to  grow 
equally  fast  at  all  times.  Growth  and  development  are 
successive,  and  follow  a  physiological  sequence.  Each 
system  or  part  has  its  own  period  of  acceleration.  Even 
in  infancy  the  vital  visceral  organs  are  sufficiently  ma- 
ture to  provide  nourishment  and  oxygen  and  to  remove 
waste.  Infancy  and  early  childhood  are  their  period  of 
most  rapid  growth,  and  belong  mainly  to  them.  But 
even  in  the  young  child  the  heavy  muscles  are  evidently 
maturing  and  crave  exercise.  The  child  runs,  jumps, 
romps,  and  throws  the  ball.  The  use  of  these  heavy 
muscles  reacts  upon  heart,  lungs,  and  all  the  internal 


PHYSICAL  TRAINING  199 

organs,  and  stimulates  their  growth  and  development. 
Thus  the  muscles  are  our  main  reliance  for  insuring 
a  healthy  adult  life.  The  kindergarten  stage  is  charac- 
terized partly  by  sensory  development,  partly  by  the 
use  of  the  heavier  muscles.  The  period  from  six  to  ten 
is  predominantly  a  motor  period.  The  child's  mental 
interests  are  still  comparatively  few  and  feeble.  He  is 
learning  the  uses  of  things.  But  inference  and  critical 
judgment,  and  the  power  to  classify,  do  not  appear  until 
later. 

These  are  the  full  years  preceding  the  lean  years  of 
rapid  growth  in  height  and  of  the  pubertal  metamor- 
phosis. We  should  use  them  to  the  utmost  to  store  up 
material,  strength,  and  vitality  against  this  greatest 
crisis  of  life.  All  else  can  be  deferred,  but  puberty 
hastens  on  relentlessly.  Still  even  this  crisis  can  be  de- 
layed somewhat  and  to  the  great  advantage  of  the  child, 
by  sufficient  open  air  and  muscular  exercise  and  by  the 
avoidance  of  undue  nervous  stimulation  and  excitement. 
The  more  we  can  thus  delay  the  crisis,  the  safer  the 
passage,  and  the  more  satisfactory  the  issue.  This  is 
especially  true  of  the  girl,  whose  development  is  preco- 
cious and  hurried.  During  the  earlier  years  of  school 
life  physical  training  gives  a  very  large  return.  And 
these  are  the  years  when  the  lack  of  mental  interests 
suggests  to  us  the  futility  of  any  large  amount  of 
book-study. 

The  pubertal  period  is  characterized  by  a  very  rapid 
growth  in  height  and  by  readjustment  or  rebuilding  of 
all  the  organs  of  the  body.  This  results  in  a  large 
amount  of  waste  which  threatens  to  poison  the  blood, 
depress  the  nervous  system,  and  to  lower  the  tone  of 
vitality  throughout  the  body.    Hence  the  rise  of  mor- 


200  GROWTH  AND  EDUCATION 

bidity,  and  the  appearance  of  anaemia  with  all  its  evil 
results  especially  noticeable  in  the  girl,  but  only  less 
marked  in  the  boy.  Every  one  of  these  symptoms  or 
conditions  is  a  crying  demand  for  more  oxygen  through 
a  larger  capacity  of  the  lungs.  This  can  be  attained 
through  muscular  exercise  and  only  in  this  way.  Phys- 
ical training  seems  to  be  at  least  as  necessary  here  as 
in  the  lower  grades. 

Even  during  adolescence  the  tissues  must  be  matured 
and  hardened  against  the  rise  of  morbidity  about  eight- 
een and  the  accompanying  increased  death-rate.  There 
seems  to  be  no  year  in  the  life  of  the  child  or  youth 
when  physical  training  is  not  absolutely  essential  for 
one  purpose  or  another.  The  results  of  sedentary  in- 
door life  show  its  need  in  the  adult. 

All  exercise,  whether  physical  or  mental,  must  be 
given  in  moderate  doses  frequently  repeated,  if  it  is  to 
have  its  largest  and  best  effects.  We  eat  three  times 
a  day,  and  the  child  can  safely  eat  oftener.  We  have 
a  succession  of  recitations  five  days  in  the  week.  Can 
we  expect  the  best  results  from  physical  training  re- 
quired only  two  half-hours  in  the  week,  or  left  for  the 
child  to  pick  up  for  himself  or  neglect  Saturdays  and 
Wednesday  afternoons  ?  It  is  urged  continually  that  we 
need  not  provide  physical  training  for  children  and  youth 
in  the  school.  They  have  the  hours  after  school  for  that 
purpose.  But  is  it  certain  that  the  boy  who  most  needs 
the  exercise  will  take  it  ?  Is  the  girl  sure  to  spend  this 
time  in  the  open  air,  and  not  to  be  needed  for  home 
duties  ? 

It  is  frequently  said  that  the  school  is  for  study, 
and  that  the  home  should  provide  the  physical  train- 
ing.   But  if  the  school  is  designed  to  insure  the  train- 


PHYSICAL  TRAINING  201 

ing  and  education  which  is  essential  at  each  epoch, 
the  lower  grades  might  well  devote  their  time  almost 
exclusively  to  physical  exercise  and  leave  the  book- 
study  to  be  cared  for  at  home.  Strong  arguments  could 
be  adduced  for  this  view.  But  both  extremes  are  to 
be  avoided.  There  is  room  for  both  kinds  of  training 
in  the  school. 

The  muscles  react  directly  or  indirectly  upon  the 
brain  as  well  as  upon  heart  and  lungs.  An  easily 
exhausted  body  means  a  brain  incapable  of  strong  or 
prolonged  effort.  Poor  blood  betrays  itself  in  poverty 
or  dullness  of  thought  and  in  a  lack  of  clearness  of 
expression  as  well  as  of  complexion.  Who  knows  how 
far  the  freshness  and  vigor  of  the  best  English  thought 
and  expression  are  due  to  their  sports  and  outdoor  life  ? 
During  puberty,  and  probably  at  all  epochs,  the  brighter 
pupils  have  the  larger  lung  capacity.  Many  girls  are 
reprimanded  for  lack  of  application,  and  finally  condi- 
tioned in  their  studies  during  the  grammar-school  years 
because  of  dullness  due  largely  or  entirely  to  their  phys- 
ical condition  and  insufficient  lung  capacity.  This  is 
cruelty.  We  should  strike  at  the  root  of  the  difficulty 
instead  of  treating  the  symptom.  The  buoyancy  and 
hopefulness  of  youth  accompany  the  rise  in  blood- 
pressure.  Courage,  vitality,  and  the  temperature  of  the 
body  sink  together  during  the  hours  before  dawn.  The 
tides  of  religious  feeling  are  at  their  flood  at  fourteen 
and  sixteen  when  the  girths  and  the  lung  capacity 
have  their  accelerated  increase.  These  are  but  a  few 
illustrations  of  the  fact  that  the  condition  of  the  body 
is  reflected  by  the  brain. 

But  this  is  not  all.  Many  of  the  most  valuable  men- 
tal qualities  and  powers  are  best  attained  through  mus- 


* 


202  GROWTH  AND  EDUCATION 

cular  exercise.  Accuracy  of  thought  and  expression  is 
secured  through  accuracy  of  observation  required  for 
precise  action.  The  will  is  trained  most  easily  and 
effectively  through  muscular  effort,  especially  during 
the  years  of  immaturity  of  the  tissues  of  the  higher 
centres  of  the  brain.  Even  the  intellectual  centres  are 
matured  in  the  same  way.  The  process  of  medullation 
of  the  fibres  and  of  maturing  of  the  cells  of  the  associa- 
tion areas  proceeds  centripetally  from  their  edges  in- 
ward. The  parts  adjoining  the  sensory  and  motor  areas 
are  the  first  to  become  medullated. 

Hence  the  subject  of  physical  training  demands  our 
most  careful  attention.  In  some  schools  the  department 
has  already  won  the  place  which  belongs  to  it.  It  is 
most  highly  prized  where  it  has  been  most  carefully 
and  thoroughly  tried.  There  is  still  difference  of  opin- 
ion as  to  methods  and  forms.  More  careful  study  and 
experiment  will  doubtless  greatly  increase  its  efficiency. 
Defects  remain  to  be  remedied.  But  even  in  very  sim- 
ple forms  it  may  be  exceedingly  useful.  ^//^/*l\. 
-4-  It  has  many  kinds  and  forms.  We  can  consider  only 
two  of  them :  Play  and  Gymnastics.  Manual  training 
is  allied  to  these,  but  is  quite  different  in  aim  and  scope. 
One  or  two  other  forms  may  be  of  almost  or  quite  equal 
importance.  The  school-garden  has  come  to  stay.  The 
country  school-house  with  its  mullein  stalks  and  sumachs, 
a  dreary  building  in  a  waste  and  cheerless  land,  will 
soon  be  a  thing  of  the  past.  With  our  wealth  of  hardy 
and  beautiful  trees,  shrubs,  vines,  and  flowers,  it  can 
and  will  be  made  a  joy  to  the  eyes  of  all  observers  and 
an  example  to  the  community.  This  work  has  already 
been  accomplished  in  many  places.  It  is  sad  that  so 
many  country  children  have  been  accustomed  mainly  to 


PHYSICAL  TRAINING  203 

ugliness  during  so  many  hours  of  every  day  of  their 
most  impressible  years.  In  spite  of  prophecies  to  the 
contrary  the  city  has  demonstrated  the  possibility  of 
such  gardens,  and  the  country  is  realizing  their  neces- 
sity. 

We  can  best  consider  first  the  value  of  Play  in  edu- 
cation. This  is  the  form  of  exercise  which  most  appeals 
to  young  children ;  which  is  easiest,  most  natural,  and 
most  useful  in  the  earlier  grades ;  and  which  forms  the 
foundation  for  other  exercises. 

No  one  can  deny  that  the  child's  impulse  to  play  is 
instinctive.  The  young  of  the  higher  vertebrates  play 
also.  Dr.  Gulick  *  has  called  attention  to  the  fact  that 
play  is  practically  the  whole  education  of  the  animal ; 
and  that  the  adult  intelligence  of  any  species  is  fore- 
shadowed in  the  complexity  of  the  play-life  of  the 
young ;  and,  finally,  that  the  character  of  the  play  has 
a  definite  relation  to  the  life-activities  of  the  adult.  An 
instinct  of  so  wide  range  and  power  among  animals 
should  be  of  great  importance  in  man. 

The  origin  of  the  instinct  has  been  variously  explained. 
Play  is  activity  for  its  own  sake.  The  playing  animal 
or  child  seeks  no  other  reason.  Some  have  regarded  it 
as  a  means  of  working  off  superfluous  energy  ;  others, 
as  exercise  to  promote  growth ;  still  others  as  a  prelim- 
inary practice,  a  rehearsal,  as  it  were,  of  the  activities 
which  are  essential  to  adult  life.  There  is  probably 
truth  in  every  one  of  these  explanations. 

Evidently  the  motions,  speech,  and  all  the  actions  of 
the  baby  are  a  form  of  play.  The  random  movements 
may  be  a  relief  from  restlessness  through  the  discharge 

1  "  Psychol ogical,    Pedagogical,   and   Religious   Aspects   of   Group 
Games,"  Ped.  Sem.  vol.  vi. 


V, 


204  GROWTH  AND  EDUCATION 

of  energy  continually  accumulating  in  the  cells.  But 
all  the  time  the  baby  is  discovering  himself,  his  parts, 
and  his  powers.  He  seems  to  be  greatly  interested  in 
all  his  discoveries,  as  he  well  may  be. 

He  begins  very  early  to  be  interested  in  simple  toys, 
especially  in  those  which  will  make  a  noise.  He  exam- 
ines them  repeatedly  and  carefully  with  eyes,  hands, 
and  mouth.  His  plays  are  largely  sensory ;  and  with 
the  dominance  of  the  sensory  powers  two  other  powers 
arise  which  are  of  great  importance  in  life.  These  are 
imagination  and  imitation. 

Imagination  and  sensation  are  very  closely  related. 
When,  before  the  dawn  of  judgment,  sensations  so 
largely  occupy  the  mind,  imagination  has  free  scope  and 
is  exceedingly  vivid.  The  child  often  fails  altogether 
to  distinguish  between  the  real  and  the  imagined. 
Hence  the  enjoyment  of  simple  toys  and  playthings  far 
exceeds  that  drawn  from  the  complex  machines  often 
given  to  children.  They  are,  as  Jastrow  has  said,  "  lay 
figures  on  which  the  child's  imagination  can  weave  and 
drape  its  fancies."  Fairy  stories  delight  the  young 
child.  But  they  must  always  be  told  in  the  same  words, 
else  they  do  not  fit  the  pictures  associated  with  them  in 
the  child's  mind.  The  value  of  this  power  cannot  be 
overestimated.  Without  it  the  scientific  man  cannot 
plan  his  experiments,  nor  the  inventor  his  machine. 
History  is  a  dreary  chronicle  unless  the  writer  has  seen 
the  events  clearly  and  vividly,  and  lived  in  the  times 
which  he  describes. 

For  the  same  reason  the  child  is  imitative.  The  actions 
and  speech  of  those  about  him  make  a  strong  impression 
on  his  mind,  and  the  impression  manifests  itself  in 
action.  Usually  the  imitation  is  vivified  by  imagination, 


PHYSICAL  TRAINING  205 

and  the  child  becomes  for  the  time  being  minister  or 
teacher,  carpenter,  doctor,  or  conductor.  Thus  he  plays 
himself  into  a  knowledge  of  the  world,  and  into  likeness 
to  his  elders. 

Sensation,  imagination,  and  imitation  mingle  in  very- 
varying  amounts  in  the  plays  of  different  children. 
They  may  use  the  same  toys,  but  the  play  will  vary  accord- 
ing as  the  child  is  imaginative,  imitative,  or  sensory  and 
matter  of  fact.  Even  at  this  period  different  children 
require  quite  different  training.  We  are  just  beginning  to 
appreciate  the  importance  of  imitation  in  education  and 
in  adult  life.  All  these  important  powers  are  developing 
rapidly  and  gaining  exercise  while  the  child  is  playing 
with  his  blocks  or  at  the  sand-pile.  With  or  soon  after 
these  exercises  come  the  attempts  at  self-expression, 
which  we  might  almost  call  manifestations  of  a  creative 
instinct.  This  is  shown  in  the  child's  drawings,  paper- 
cutting,  building,  and  other  amusements. 

The  child's  movements  are  steadily  increasing  in 
number  and  complexity.  Early  movements  are  those  of 
the  fundamental  muscles  which  become  reflex  and  form 
the  foundation  for  and  beginnings  of  all  the  complex 
actions  of  adult  life.  So  running,  walking,  handling, 
and  the  use  of  the  body.  Only  when  these  have  been 
thoroughly  mastered  can  the  brain  proceed  to  higher 
and  more  complex  activities.  All  these  plays  are  indi- 
vidualistic. 

Gulick  and  Burk  both  agree  in  these  general  con- 
clusions. Burk1  finds  that  the  spontaneous  plays  of 
kindergarten  children  involve  the  use  of  the  heavy  mus- 
cles mainly  of  the  legs.  They  involve  no  intense  effort, 
precision  or  skill.    About  fifty-one  per  cent  of  the  plays 

1  The  Study  of  the  Kindergarten  Problem. 


206  GROWTH  AND   EDUCATION 

were  by  individuals,  twenty-six  per  cent  by  groups 
of  two  or  three,  and  twenty-three  per  cent  by  larger 
groups.  The  spontaneous  play  of  this  epoch  is  "  un- 
organized, non-competitive,  and  non-cooperative." 

A  second  group  of  plays  prevails  between  seven  and 
twelve.  These,  according  to  Dr.  Gulick,1  are  social  but 
competitive.  Boys  and  girls  play  in  groups,  but  every 
one  usually  plays  for  himself.  Tag  and  other  running 
games  are  the  earliest.  Throwing  games  are  popular. 
Boys  "  stump "  one  another  to  difficult  feats.  The 
movements  are  more  complicated  and  demand  skill. 
Hunting  and  fishing  are  great  delights.  Predatory 
instincts  begin  to  appear.  These  are  the  traditional, 
racial  games,  all  based  on  the  same  instincts  and  needs, 
but  varying  greatly  among  different  peoples.  They 
represent  the  life-occupations  of  the  highest  mammals 
below  man :  chase,  battle,  etc.  The  instincts  of  the 
player  are  still  animal  rather  than  distinctively  human. 
They  depend,  as  a  rule,  upon  muscular  power  and 
knack  more  than  upon  strategy  or  even  skill. 

After  twelve,  or  thereabout,  a  third  class  of  games 
appears ;  baseball,  basketball,  football,  etc.  They  are 
group  games  played  with  sides.  They  are  markedly 
cooperative,  and  demand  the  subordination  of  the  indi- 
vidual. "  Team-work  "  is  the  key-word.  Sacrifice-hits 
are  demanded.  The  games  are  complex  and  highly  or- 
ganized. Methods,  aims,  ends,  and  rules  are  fixed  and 
definite.  The  most  complex  and  precise  movements  are 
required.  Strength  and  endurance  are  tested.  Mere 
technical  skill  and  knack  no  longer  suffice.  The  higher 
mental  powers  play  a  larger  part.    This  is  but  a  brief 

1  "Psychological,  Pedagogical,  and    Religious  Aspects   of    Group 
Games,''  Ped.  Sent.  vol.  vi. 


PHYSICAL  TRAINING  207 

condensation  of  Dr.  Gulick's  excellent  analysis  of  the 
plays  and  games  at  different  epochs. 

We  are  chiefly  interested  in  the  cooperative  and 
competitive  games  played  between  seven  and  twelve. 
Tag,  hide-and-seek,  and  other  running  games  are  earli- 
est. Ball  soon  follows.  Our  question  is,  Is  the  educa- 
tional value  of  these  games  sufficient  to  justify  giving 
them  a  regular  place  in  the  school  curriculum  during 
these  years  ? 

We  will  consider  first  their  hygienic  value.  Eunning 
and  throwing  games  involve  TheTfce  of  the  heavier 
muscles.  They  exercise  the  largest  amount  of  muscular 
tissue  with  the  smallest  expenditure  of  nervous  energy. 
In  the  use  of  the  finer  muscles,  in  drawing,  writing, 
and  fencing,  the  reverse  is  true.  The  games  are  suited 
to  the  condition  and  stage  of  development  of  the  nerv- 
ous system.  They  exercise  and  stimulate  growth  in  its 
most  stable  and  fundamental  portions,  and  fortify  it 
against  all  forms  of  nervous  weakness  and  disease.  We 
have  already  seen  that  the  use  of  so  much  muscle 
exercises  and  stimulates  heart,  lungs,  and  all  the  vis- 
cera, and  promotes  a  healthy  growth.  If  one  organ, 
for  instance  the  heart  or  the  lungs,  is  undersized  or 
weak,  it  has  to  work  the  hardest  to  meet  the  require- 
ments of  the  body,  and  receives  the  largest  share  of 
the  exercise.  It  is  stimulated  to  grow  faster,  and  thus 
overtakes  the  rest.  There  is  little  danger  of  over- 
strain ;  for,  when  the  weakest  part  has  had  exercise 
enough,  the  child  tires  and  plays  more  quietly  or  drops 
out.  He  can  do  this  easily,  for  usually  there  are  no 
fixed  sides.  Thus  the  weaker  part  is  made  as  strong 
as  the  others,  and  the  body  gains  a  symmetrical  devel- 
opment. 


208  GROWTH  AND   EDUCATION 

No  game  is  usually  played  for  a  very  long  time. 
Soon  all  tire  and  rest,  or  a  new  game  is  started,  exercis- 
ing new  muscles  and  nervous  centres. 

This  growth  and  equalization  of  all  parts  of  the  body, 
resulting  in  a  symmetrical  development,  is  the  essential 
part  of  education  at  this  epoch.  Furthermore,  in  all 
children's  games  periods  of  physical  activity  alternate 
frequently  with  periods  of  rest.  There  is  little  half- 
hearted dawdling.    This  is  the  ideal  method  of  exercise. 

If  you  watch  a  young  child  play,  you  are  amused  by 
the  number,  variety,  and  vigor  of  movements.  Many  of 
these  give  good  exercise,  but  are  a  complete  waste  of 
energy  as  far  as  the  result  of  the  game  is  concerned. 
Gradually,  as  he  plays  more,  he  learns  to  suppress  these, 
to  economize  and  concentrate  energy.  This  is  one  of 
the  earliest  and  best  lessons  in  self-control.  It  is  a  slow 
growth.  But  the  poise  and  repose  of  the  trained  athlete 
are  as  admirable  as  his  strength.  All  his  life  long  he 
saves  the  energy  which  others  waste  in  fidgeting  and 
fretting.  He  is  a  shrewd  investor,  not  a  spendthrift,  of 
his  great  power. 

Playfurnishes  the  very  best  mental  training.  Watch 
even  a  game  of  tag.  The  sense-organs  are  all  alert. 
The  attention  is  focused  on  one  point.  This  is  the  best 
means  of  training  the  will,  for  close  attention  to  one 
thing  is  one  of  the  best  forms  of  will-power.  The  child 
must  "  size  up"  the  situation,  and  grasp  the  opportunity 
once  and  for  all.  He  cannot  "  stand  shivering  on  the 
brink  of  action,"  as  the  adult  so  frequently  does.  Think- 
ing, willing,  and  doing  are  united,  not  separated.  The 
same  movement  is  repeated  until  perfected,  and  with 
undiminished  interest.  The  child  forgets  himself,  and 
loses  shyness  and  self-consciousness  in  the  game.   As  he 


PHYSICAL  TRAINING  209 

grows  older,  the  opportunity  for  skill,  thought,  plan, 
and  strategy  constantly  increases.  On  the  play-ground 
he  learns  far  more  than  the  rudiments  of  the  science  of 
success  in  life. 

Here  he  must  act  on  his  own  initiative.  There  is  no 
one  to  tell  him  always  just  what  to  do,  or  more  fre- 
quently what  not  to  do.  He  is  placed  more  nearly  in 
the  position  of  the  farmer's  boy,  who  had  to  help  him- 
self out  of  every  emergency  as  best  he  could.  The 
greatest  losses  in  our  modern  life  and  education  lie 
along  these  lines. 

The  kindergarten  child  is  gregarious,  but  hardly  so- 
cial. The  sensory  period  is  one  of  little  cooperation  or 
competition,  hence  it  is  a  time  of  comparative  peace. 
But  the  child  in  the  primary  and  intermediate  grades 
is  learning  to  get  on  with  his  fellows.  He  is  finding 
how  much  he  can  claim,  and  what  he  must  yield  ;  and 
how  to  yield  with  good  nature.  This  is  no  easy  lesson 
in  these  days  of  small  families  and  large  indulgence. 
Yet  it  must  be  learned.  There  is  no  more  pitiable 
object  than  the  boy  trained  under  tutors  or  in  small 
classes  when  thrown  among  other  boys  in  academy  or 
college. 

He  is  often  handicapped  throughout  life  by  the  loss 
of  this  early  training.  At  no  period  is  there  so  much 
friction  and  squabbling,  and  so  many  accusations  of 
meanness  and  unfair  play.  The  result  of  the  experience 
is  worth  a  thousand-fold  more  than  it  costs,  even  if  the 
price  is  sometimes  tears  and  bloodshed  and  a  black  eye. 
The  difficulties  prove  the  need  of  the  training. 

Here  the  boy  and  girl  receive  their  first  lessons  in 
the  grandest  art  or  science  of  life,  that  of  making  many 
firm  friendships.    A  wise  clergyman  once  said  that  in 


210  GROWTH  AND  EDUCATION 

the  millennium,  if  not  sooner,  a  man's  success  in  life 
would  be  measured  by  the  number  of  friends  instead  of 
the  number  of  dollars  which  he  had  amassed.  Friend- 
ships are  made  on  the  playground  far  more  than  at  the 
desk.  If  he  does  not  learn  to  make  them  now,  he  prob- 
ably never  will.  It  was  the  "  twa  who  paddled  in  the 
burn  "  and  "  wandered  o'er  the  brae  "  together,  who 
formed  the  friendship  which  weary  wanderings  and  wide 
seas  could  not  break.  We  parents  usually  do  not  help 
the  child  enough  in  this  most  important  branch  of  his 
education,  and  we  should  encourage  far  more  than  we 
do  his  democratic  tendencies. 

The  conception  of  fair  and  unfair  play  is  almost  the 
first  genuine  and  spontaneous  moral  distinction  which 
the  child  makes.  He  is  still  very  hazy  in  his  ideas 
of  rights  of  property,  and  is  anything  but  clear  in  his 
theories  as  to  the  necessity  of  truthfulness.  But  he  is 
sure  that  the  boy  who  cheats  is  mean  and  low,  which 
is  his  definition  of  total  depravity.  If  this  germ  of  mo- 
rality is  fostered  as  it  may  be,  it  will  bud  and  blossom 
in  a  whole  system  of  individual,  social,  and  civic  right- 
eousness. It  has  marvelous  vitality  and  possibilities. 
But  if  you  despise  or  neglect  it,  if  you  attempt  to  replace 
it  by  your  own  adult  system  of  ethics,  what  happens  ? 
The  boy  and  girl  lose  faith  in  their  own  conceptions  of 
morality ;  they  can  neither  understand  nor  appreciate 
your  adult  ethics  ;  they  are  left  without  any  system 
which  appeals  to  them  ;  their  last  state  is  worse  than 
their  first.  Indeed  they  have  fallen  from  a  compara- 
tively high  estate.  Fair  play  is  at  this  stage  more  im- 
portant than  grace  of  deportment.  Grace  will  in  time 
follow  strength. 

Play  is  the  best  form  and  kind  of  physical  training 


PHYSICAL  TRAINING  211 

because  it  gives  the  most  enjoyment.  The  chat  and  so- 
cial pleasures  accompanying  a  good  dinner  increase 
our  powers  of  digestion.  The  enjoyment  of  a  lesson  or 
study  fixes  it  in  our  minds,  as  well  as  inspires  to  further 
effort.  So  joy  in  exercise  promotes  growth  as  really  as 
sunlight  does.  The  work  from  which  the  play  element 
is  absent  can  never  be  of  the  highest  order.  Art  is  like 
play  in  that  it  is  its  own  reward.  Opportunity  is  an 
even  higher  and  larger  word  than  duty  ;  and  opportun- 
ities must  be  enjoyed.  We  should  dignify  play  by  our 
attention,  study,  and  approval.  Especially  the  girl  needs 
to  form  such  habits  of  play  and  other  forms  of  phys- 
ical exercise  that  she  will  not  outgrow  them  when  she 
lengthens  her  skirts. 

The  Puritan  in  his  righteous  protest  against  the  fol- 
lies of  a  frivolous  court  went  to  the  extreme  of  trying 
very  hard  to  despise  play.  He  succeeded  in  making 
himself  and  all  his  neighbors  thoroughly  uncomfortable. 
He  frowned  upon  leisure,  which  Aristotle  considered  the 
end  of  work.  Some  of  his  descendants  inveigh  against 
the  kindergarten,  and  forbid  following  the  natural  in- 
terests of  the  child.  It  is  a  relic  of  the  ancient,  and  not 
yet  fully  outgrown,  opinion,  that  Nature  is  essentially 
evil.  They  used  to  say :  "  Hold  the  child's  nose  to  the 
grindstone."  The  result  was  usually  a  severe  struggle, 
with  much  animosity,  heat,  and  friction;  which  ended 
in  painfully  and  slowly  removing  a  useful  if  not  orna- 
mental appendage.  What  we  need  is  not  to  crowd  out 
play  or  its  spirit,  but  somehow  to  get  more  of  the  en- 
thusiasm and  zest  of  the  playground  into  the  work. 

The  advantages  of  play  are  many  and  great,  and  we 
have  by  no  means  exhausted  the  list.  But  it  may  be 
urged  that  every  moment  during  the  session  is  needed 


212  GROWTH  AND  EDUCATION 

for  recitation  or  study.  The  hour  of  play  seems  to  be 
more  profitable  than  any  recitation  or  study ;  and  if  it 
can  be  gained  in  no  other  way,  some  learning  should 
be  sacrificed  to  make  place  for  it.  But  those  who  have 
had  experience  in  half-time  schools  report  that  young 
children  learn  almost  or  quite  as  much  during  half  a 
day  as  during  a  whole  one.  The  introduction  of  out- 
door and  manual  work  in  our  truant  and  industrial 
schools  has  not  diminished  the  amount  of  knowledge 
acquired,  but  rather  increased  it.  The  children  are 
more  industrious,  as  well  as  amenable  and  contented. 

Much  of  the  book-work  might  well  be  postponed 
until  the  brain  is  somewhat  more  mature.  The  study 
introduced  before  the  child  can  appreciate  it  becomes 
an  object  of  indifference  or  more  probably  of  aversion 
when  it  might  be  enjoyed  a  year  later.  The  work  would 
be  done  later  in  less  time,  and  with  far  less  effort.  The 
disciplinary  value  of  most  studies  as  a  means  of  stimu- 
lating growth  of  the  brain  is  very  small  at  this  age. 

Every  teacher  knows  how  few  boys  and  girls  grow  up 
with  good  habits  of  study  and  powers  of  application. 
The  colleges  and  universities  criticise  the  preparatory 
schools  for  this  defect,  and  the  teachers  of  each  grade 
report  that  the  habit  has  been  acquired  and  fixed  in 
some  lower  one.  Hence  some  logical  sages  lay  the 
blame  on  the  kindergarten  system. 

The  cause  seems  to  lie  in  the  lack  of  powers  of  ap- 
plication, and  here  the  remedy  must  be  applied.  The 
child  in  the  primary  or  intermediate  grade  cannot  and 
ought  not  to  be  required  to  exercise  the  immature 
centres  of  thought  continuously  for  any  long  time. 
Probably  one  hour  of  mental  work  each  day  furnishes 
more  exercise  than  the  brain  requires  or  can  use  profit- 


PHYSICAL  TRAINING  213 

ably.  He  spends  this  amount  of  time  in  class-work, 
and  returns  to  his  seat.  In  many  of  our  schools  one 
young  woman  or  mere  girl  has  thirty  or  forty  pupils  in 
one  room.  They  must  be  kept  quiet,  or  disorder  and 
anarchy  will  prevail.  The  child  is  given  desk-work,  or 
is  told  to  take  his  book  and  study.  Every  muscle  in 
his  body  is  tingling  and  twitching  for  the  exercise 
which  it  sadly  needs,  while  the  brain  has  neither  need 
nor  use  for  further  exercise.  But  he  must  sit  still.  The 
problem  which  he  has  to  solve  is  really  this :  How  to 
forget  his  discomfort,  and  to  remain  quiet  and  to  pre- 
tend to  look  at  his  book,  and  not  do  any  mental  work. 
He  looks  out  of  the  window  all  he  dares,  and  thinks 
about  outside  things  the  rest  of  the  time.  Now  and 
then  he  reads  a  little  in  his  book  and  moves  his  lips. 
But  heart  and  thought  are  far  away.  When  he  has 
kept  up  this  practice  for  two  or  three  years,  genuine 
study  has  become  quite  impossible.  He  has  formed 
habits  of  dawdling  aud  inattention.  He  will  find  it 
very  hard  to  break  or  change  these  habits.  The  teacher 
is  not  to  blame.  It  is  wonderful  that  she  can  do  as  well 
as  she  does.  The  child  is  certainly  not  to  blame.  It 
would  harm  him  to  keep  his  brain  active  throughout 
the  session.    The  system  is  responsible. 

We  seem  to  have  taken  it  for  granted  that  if  an 
adult  can  apply  himself  for  several  hours  to  the  work 
of  class  and  study,  the  child  can  do  the  same.  We  are 
in  danger  of  forgetting  that  the  frequent  interruption 
and  change  which  spoil  adult  work  are  exactly  what 
the  child  most  needs.  Send  him  out  of  doors  until  the 
muscles  have  had  the  exercise  which  they  need.  Then 
he  will  return  ready  to  apply  himself  vigorously  to  his 
books  for  a  short  time.    A  few  moments  of  vigorous 


214  GROWTH  AND   EDUCATION 

application  at  any  one  time  are  enough.  The  result  of 
repeating  this  alternation  day  after  day  would  be  habits 
of  close  application.  We  have  no  right  to  expect  en- 
durance from  the  brain  tissues  of  the  child.  As  he 
grows  older  the  study  periods  may  be  lengthened.  But 
we  shall  surely  gain  our  best  results  by  making  them 
too  short  rather  than  too  long. 

It  is  certainly  a  misfortune  that  the  plaything  or 
game  is  always  a  reward,  and  the  book  very  rarely  so. 
We  gladly  recognize  the  great  improvement  already 
made  in  this  respect,  but  something  still  remains  to  be 
done.    Says  shrewd  old  John  Locke  : 

"  If  he  [the  child]  be  ordered  every  day  to  whip  his 
top  so  long  as  to  make  him  sufficiently  weary,  do  you 
not  think  that  he  will  apply  himself  with  eagerness  to 
his  book,  and  wish  for  it,  if  you  promise  it  him  as 
a  reward  of  having  whipped  his  Top  lustily,  quite  out 
all  the  time  that  is  set  him  ?  Children,  in  the  things 
they  do,  if  they  comport  with  their  age,  find  little 
difference  so  they  may  be  doing:  The  Esteem  they 
have  for  one  thing  above  another  they  borrow  from 
others ;  so  that  what  those  about  them  make  to  be  a 
reward  to  them  will  really  be  so.  By  this  art  it  is  in 
their  Governor's  choice  whether  Scotch-hop>pers  shall 
reward  their  Dancing,  or  Dancing  their  Scotch- 
hoppers  ;  whether  peg-top  or  reading ;  playing  at  Trap 
or  studying  the  Globes  shall  be  more  acceptable  and 
pleasing  to  them ;  all  that  they  desire  being  to  be  busy, 
and  busy  as  they  imagine  in  things  of  their  own  choice, 
and  which  they  receive  as  favors  from  their  Parents  or 
others  for  whom  they  have  respect  and  with  whom  they 
would  be  in  Credit.  A  set  of  children  thus  ordered 
and  kept  from  the  ill  example  of  others,  would  all  of 


PHYSICAL  TRAINING  215 

them,  I  suppose,  with  as  much  earnestness  and  delight 
learn  to  read,  write,  and  what  else  one  would  have 
them,  as  others  do  their  ordinary  plays.1 

"  Thus  Children  may  be  cozened  into  a  Knowledge 
of  the  Letters  ;  be  taught  to  read  without  perceiving  it 
to  be  anything  but  a  sport,  and  play  themselves  into 
that  which  others  are  whipped  for.  Children  should  not 
have  anything  like  work  or  serious  laid  on  them ; 
neither  their  Minds  nor  Bodies  will  bear  it ;  it  injures 
their  Healths  ;  and  their  being  forced  and  tied  down  to 
their  Books  in  an  age  at  enmity  with  all  such  restraint 
has,  I  doubt  not,  been  the  reason,  why  a  great  many 
have  hated  books  and  learning  all  their  lives  after. 
'T  is  like  a  surfeit,  that  leaves  an  Aversion  behind  not 
to  be  removed."  2 

"  Play,"  said  Colonel  Parker,/' is  God's  method  of 
teaching  children  how  to  work."  "  The  plays  of  chil- 
dren," says  Froebel,  "  are  the  germinal  leaves  of  all 
later  life."  Some  one  has  expressed  the  same  thought 
somewhat  less  elegantly,  saying :  "  The  boy  without  a 
play-ground  is  father  to  the  man  without  a  job."  With- 
out play  life  is  sttmted,  and  few  of  its  possibilities  are  re- 
alized. Great  men,  as  Yoder  has  shown,  usually  played 
hard  and  well  in  their  childhood.  The  English  nation 
recognizes  how  much  it  owes  to  the  national  games. 
Other  nations  are  fast  learning  to  recognize  the  value 
of  this  characteristic  of  English  education.  A  more 
eloquent  plea  for  games  and  plays  can  hardly  be  found 
than  in  Burgerstein's  and  Netolitzky's  "  Handbuch  der 
Schulhygiene."  The  place  of  play  in  the  curriculum  has 
been   recognized   in    some,   at   least,    of   the    German 

1  Locke,  Thoughts  concerning  Education,  par.  129. 

2  Ibid.  par.  149. 


216  GROWTH  AND   EDUCATION 

schools,  and  we  must  remember  that  Germany  is  the 
home  of  gymnastics,  and  hence  has  less  need  of  play. 
The  same  is  true  of  some,  or  perhaps  many,  of  our 
American  schools.  The  proper  length  and  frequency  of 
these  play-periods  must  be  determined  by  the  experi- 
ments of  teachers  and  superintendents.  Their  amount 
and  distribution  will  probably  differ  in  different  local- 
ities according  to  needs  and  conditions.  The  best  results 
require  that  play  should  occupy  fixed  times,  and  that  it 
should  alternate  with  class-work.  A  little  consideration 
will  convince  any  one  that  these  advantages  cannot  be 
gained  by  dismissing  the  smaller  children  a  half-hour 
earlier,  and  sending  them  to  their  homes.  But  even  this 
is  better  than  a  longer  confinement. 

No  small  advantage  from  this  change  would  be  that 
the  teacher  would  be  compelled  to  spend  a  certain 
amount  of  time  each  day  in  the  open  air,  and  would  be 
tempted,  at  least,  to  take  some  active  exercise.  The 
muscles  of  the  teacher  need  exercise  as  much  as  those 
of  the  child. 

The  question  of  athletics  in  the  high  school  is  not 
a  purely  physiological  problem,  and  we  can  hardly  more 
than  glance  at  that  aspect  of  it.  The  group  games  of 
adolescence  have  great  value.  They  strengthen  and 
harden  muscles,  and  test  endurance.  "  Head-work  "  is 
necessary.  The  player  must  be  keen  to  see  the  strong 
and  weak  points  of  his  supporters  and  opponents,  and 
quick  to  take  advantage  of  them.  He  must  have  pa- 
tience, courage,  and  self-control ;  loyalty  and  obedience 
to  his  captain.  He  must  subordinate  his  own  interests  to 
those  of  the  team.  He  learns  to  play  an  uphill  or 
losing  game,  and  to  smile  in  the  face  of  discouragement 
or  defeat.    If  overstrain  of  the  weak  heart  is  avoided, 


PHYSICAL  TRAINING  217 

school  athletics  may  be  made  exceedingly  useful.  Many 
of  the  worst  evils  of  athletics  in  our  larger  institutions 
are  not  likely  to  occur  in  high  schools.  A  larger  scope 
for  athletics  during  these  earlier  years  would  probably 
lead  to  a  more  moderate  and  temperate  enjoyment  of 
them  afterward.  Inoculation  often  lessens  the  viru- 
lence of  disease. 


CHAPTER  XV 

PHYSICAL    TRAINING GYMNASTICS 

The  need  of  gymnastics  is  almost  universally  recog- 
nized. But  different  communities  and  nations  assign 
it  a  very  different  value  compared  with  that  of 
other  branches.  In  the  German  system  of  education  it 
holds  a  very  important  place.  We  are  only  beginning 
to  appreciate  that  our  own  children  need  it  even  more 
than  the  German.  Its  value  seems  to  be  far  better  and 
more  generally  appreciated  than  that  of  play,  hence  our 
discussion  of  the  subject  can  be  briefer. 

Play  is  activity  for  its  own  sake.  Gymnastic  exer- 
cises have  an  ulterior  purpose,  to  develop,  strengthen, 
or  otherwise  modify  some  organ  of  the  body.  Hence 
the  same  activity  may  at  the  same  time  take  the  form 
of  play  or  of  gymnastics.  The  boy  enjoj^s  running  games, 
but  finds  that  he  cannot  run  as  fast  or  as  far  as  his 
mates.  He  practices  running  to  increase  his  speed  or 
endurance.  Now  his  running  has  become  a  gymnastic 
exercise. 

We  enter  upon  a  course  of  gymnastic  training  because 
we  recognize  the  need  of  strengthening  some  weak 
organ  of  the  body ;  or  others  notice  the  need  and 
prescribe  it  for  us.  Gymnastics  are  possible  without 
a  gymnasium,  and  many  free  gymnastic  exercises  are 
performed  without  any  apparatus.  Gymnastics  require 
careful  and  wise  supervision.  The  boy  turned  loose  in 
a  gymnasium  naturally  uses  his  strongest  muscles.  Such 


PHYSICAL  TRAINING  — GYMNASTICS  219 

exercises  are  easiest,  give  him  the  most  pleasure,  and 
allow  him  to  show  his  superiority.  He  neglects  the  exer- 
cise which  will  strengthen  his  weakest  parts.  The 
result  is  that  his  arms,  shoulders,  or  legs  become  devel- 
oped beyond  the  rest  of  his  body.  This  is  frequently 
noticeable  in  athletes  addicted  to  the  use  of  bar  or 
trapeze. 

The  aim  of  our  modern  system  of  gymnastics  is  not 
to  produce  prodigies  of  strength,  or  to  enable  men  to 
perform  difficult  feats,  but  to  give  an  harmonious  devel- 
opment. This  requires  a  wise  teacher  and  a  patient,  per- 
severing pupil.  Here  is  one  difficulty  of  gymnastics : 
to  make  them  as  attractive  and  enjoyable  as  play,  and 
thus  to  give  the  most  enthusiastic  and  vigorous  exercise. 
The  pupil  who  has  little  zest  or  interest  gains  but  a 
small  part  of  the  possible  benefit.  Some  one  has  said: 
"  Play  is  food,  gymnastics  are  medicine."  But  gymnastics 
are  necessary  as  well  as  play.  First  of  all,  it  is  impossible 
in  our  larger  cities  to  find  playgrounds  adequate  to  the 
needs  of  the  great  multitudes  of  children.  In  severe 
weather  outdoor  play  is  difficult  or  impossible.  Time 
is  often  an  important  element.  During  the  recess  some 
of  the  smaller  and  weaker  children  who  most  need  the 
exercise  do  not  join  in  the  games.  As  the  boy  and  girl 
grow  older,  they  may  cease  to  play,  and  spend  their  free 
hours  moping  over  books.  Hence  for  many  gymnastics 
are  absolutely  essential. 

Even  the  child  who  plays  vigorously  and  freely  needs 
gymnastic  training  also.  For  he  plays  longest  and  most 
frequently  the  games  in  which  he  excels,  and  neglects 
the  weaker  muscles.  Much  of  this  danger  can  be  avoided 
on  the  playground  by  careful  and  wise  supervision.  But 
even  this  rarely  goes  to  the  very  root  of  the  difficulty. 


220  GROWTH  AND  EDUCATION 

A  clumsy  or  ungraceful  movement  is  always  a  sign  of 
injudicious  or  wrong  use  of  muscles.  Few  men  and 
women  walk  or  run  gracefully.  For  this  art  we  rely  on 
the  gymnastics  of  the  dancing-class. 

In  selecting  a  system  of  gymnastics  we  must  often 
impose  upon  the  child  movements  or  actions  which  he 
would  not  choose  for  himself.  Hence  we  must  be  care- 
ful in  our  choice  of  exercises.  What  the  child  instinct- 
ively chooses  will  almost  certainly  be  of  some  or  con- 
siderable benefit  to  him.  What  we  choose  for  him  may 
do  him  harm.  What  is  good  at  one  period  of  life  may 
be  harmful  at  another.  Running  is  hardly  to  be  encour- 
aged after  middle  life,  nor  feats  of  endurance  in  early 
youth.  When  gymnasia  first  came  into  use  the  narrow- 
chested  boy  was  allowed  to  exercise  on  the  parallel  bars 
to  broaden  his  chest.  Later  it  was  asserted  that  this 
exercise  most  strengthened  the  muscles  which  pull  the 
shoulders  forward,  and  that  pulling  the  weights  was 
much  better  for  such  cases.  In  selecting  an  exercise  or 
system  of  exercises  we  must  think  very  carefully  just 
what  we  wish  to  accomplish,  and  then  observe  sharply 
whether  the  exercise  is  producing  the  desired  results. 
The  exercise  must  be  suited  in  character,  quantity,  and 
quality  to  the  age  and  needs  of  the  pupil. 

Exercises  may  be  classified  as  to  quantity  as  gentle, 
moderate,  or  violent.  When  gymnastics  were  first  intro- 
duced, every  one  supposed  that  exercises  which  required 
a  severe  effort  would  give  the  greatest  amount  of 
strength.  It  was  soon  discovered  that  the  muscles 
developed  far  more  rapidly  with  very  light  clubs  or 
dumb-bells.  These  stimulated  nerve  and  muscles  suffi- 
ciently, caused  a  rapid  circulation  of  the  blood,  and  pro- 
moted growth  without  causing  exhaustion  or  too  great 


PHYSICAL  TRAINING  — GYMNASTICS  221 

destruction  of  material  or  tissue.  The  little  girl  skip- 
ping rope  lifts  her  body  several  inches  perhaps  one 
hundred  times  in  a  minute.  If  she  keeps  it  up  for  five 
minutes  she  has  lifted  her  body  over  one  hundred  and 
fifty  feet,  a  large  amount  of  work.  She  does  a  little  at 
a  time  and  repeats  it  frequently. 

A  second  classification  mentioned  by  Lagrange  is  of 
interest  to  us.  He  divides  exercise  into  three  groups 
according  as  they  promote  strength,  speed,  or  endurance. 
The  same  exercise  which  will  promote  speed  may  or  may 
not  promote  endurance. 

We  are  considering  exercise  in  its  relation  to  the 
growth  and  development  of  the  child.  We  cannot  ex- 
pect that  any  one  of  these  three  qualities  will  be  highly 
developed  during  childhood  or  early  youth.  We  must 
regard  exercise  more  in  its  hygienic  aspects.  We  have 
already  noticed  that  some  movements  require  very  little 
nervous  expenditure,  while  others  are  more  exhausting 
to  the  nervous  than  to  the  muscular  system.  Thus 
fencing  and  very  complicated  evolutions  in  marching 
require  the  closest  attention  and  are  nervous  even  more 
than  muscular  exercises.  The  exercises  of  the  child 
during  school  hours  should  be  largely  recreative,  though 
not  entirely  so.  Very  complicated  marching  evolutions, 
difficult  and  precise  movements  of  hands  and  arms 
may  furnish  little  relief  to  the  fatigue  of  study.  Yet 
these  may  be  very  valuable  in  their  time  and  place.  On 
the  other  hand,  mere  automatic  exercises,  which  can  be 
performed  without  thinking  about  them,  may  not  suf- 
ficiently divert  the  girl  in  school  or  college  who  is  pre- 
paring for  a  difficult  examination.  Here  complicated 
movements  may  be  better,  and  the  frolic  of  play  the 
best  use  of  the  time.    Once  again,  the  play  must  be 


222  GROWTH  AND  EDUCATION 

suited  to  the  age,  condition,  and  needs  of  the  pupil. 
No  iron-clad  system  can  always  meet  new  needs, 
changes,  and  emergencies. 

Many  exercises  which  increase  chest-girth  do  so 
largely  by  increasing  the  muscles  of  the  chest ;  thus, 
parallel  bars  and  chest  weights.  As  Lagrange  says, 
lung  capacity  must  be  increased  mainly  from  within. 
Hence  the  advantages  not  only  of  running,  swimming, 
and  bicycling,  but  of  singing  and  shouting.  Ordinary 
light  exercises  in  high  altitudes  often  markedly  increase 
the  capacity  of  the  lungs  and  thus  the  girth  of  the 
chest.  The  child  with  narrow  chest  and  small  lungs  is 
often  disinclined  to  join  in  active  play  or  to  take  the 
exercise  which  he  sadly  needs.  The  condition  of  such 
children  may  grow  worse  instead  of  better,  and  they 
fall  a  prey  to  consumption  or  sink  in  invalidism.  Here 
gymnastics  are  an  invaluable  and  necessary  corrective. 
Anything  which  prevents  free  breathing,  like  adenoid 
growths,  hypertrophy  of  the  tonsils,  or  catarrh,  hinders 
the  full  expansion  of  the  lungs  and  prevents  their  full 
development.  Here,  of  course,  the  physical  trainer 
needs  the  help  of  the  physician. 

The  skin  of  the  child  or  man  who  keeps  in  perfect 
physical  condition  is  firm  and  fresh,  the  eye  is  bright 
and  clear,  the  tissues  are  hard  and  firm.  There  is  every 
appearance  of  strength  and  vitality.  Even  fatigue,  as 
Treves  says,  brings  no  pain  to  him,  but  a  full  enjoy- 
ment of  rest,  by  which  he  is  refreshed  and  made  ready 
for  the  joy  of  further  activity.  The  improved  physical 
condition  is  apparent  in  the  carriage.  Awkwardness  of 
movement  is  usually  a  sign  of  lack  of  coordination  of 
the  muscles,  sometimes  of  ill-developed  joints.  The 
muscles  are  not  under  the  perfect  control  which  exacts 


PHYSICAL  TRAINING  — GYMNASTICS  223 

from  each  the  amount  and  kind  of  action  suited  to  the 
movement.  They  oppose  and  hamper  one  another  to  an 
abnormal  extent.  The  seat  of  the  difficulty  is  usually 
in  the  nervous  system,  but  the  remedy  must  be  applied 
through  the  muscles. 

A  proper  system  of  gymnastics  trains  the  child  or 
youth  to  perform  each  movement  properly  in  its  turn. 
It  begins  with  the  simplest  and  ends  with  the  most 
complex.  Only  those  muscles  which  are  needed  for  the 
action  are  used,  the  others  are  not  allowed  to  interfere. 
The  action  is  repeated  until  it  is  performed  automatic- 
ally. This  results  in  great  economy  and  saving  of 
muscular  and  still  more  of  nervous  energy ;  and  waste 
of  nervous  energy  is  the  worst  of  all  dissipations. 
Everything  is  done  with  apparent  ease,  and  this  is  the 
first  element  of  grace  of  action  and  movement. 

The  same  control  gives  endurance.  The  conscious- 
ness of  vigor  and  power  gives  courage,  calmness,  and 
zest  in  difficult  undertakings.  It  saves  the  continual 
output  of  effort,  which  always  involves  an  expenditure 
of  energy  disproportionate  to  the  results.  We  rarely 
do  anything  well  until  we  do  it  easily  and  joyfully.  All 
normal  activity  gives  pleasure. 

Hence  in  the  stress  and  strain  of  adult  life  the  well- 
trained  athlete  has  a  great  advantage.  He  feels  himself 
equal  to  each  new  task,  and  finishes  it  well  without 
hurry  or  fret.  He  knows  that  he  can  carry  the  burden 
of  the  day,  and  wastes  no  energy  in  worry.  His  calm- 
ness and  courage  help  all  his  fellows.  At  the  end  of 
the  day  he  has  not  expended  nearly  as  much  nervous 
energy,  and  still  has  accomplished  far  more  than  the 
weaker  man  who  has  been  fidgeting  and  worrying  a 
large  part  of  the  time. 


224  GROWTH  AND  EDUCATION 

Only  such  a  man  can  really  enjoy  life.  Only  he  can 
understand  the  meaning  of  President  Eliot's  expression, 
the  "  enjoyment  of  work."  He  has  reduced  the  labor  of 
life  to  a  minimum,  even  work  is  largely  play  to  him. 
It  is  not  too  much  to  say  that  such  a  man  has  doubled 
his  reserve  of  strength  and  halved  his  expenditure. 

Such  strong,  healthy  men  and  women,  overflowing 
with  vitality  and  strength,  attract  us.  We  like  to  work 
with  them.  They  remind  us  of  the  figures  in  Claude 
Lorraine's  pictures  of  a  land  where  the  hardest  work  is 
done  with  such  ease  and  evident  enjoyment  that  we 
wish  to  share  in  it.  It  is  no  wonder  that  we  choose  them 
for  our  leaders.  Their  faith,  courage,  and  confidence 
are  exceedingly  infectious.  We  cannot  help  feeling  that 
they  are  what  we  would  and  ought  to  be. 

The  man  with  disordered  liver,  poor  digestive  and 
assimilative  powers,  small  lungs,  or  weak  heart,  which 
seem  at  perpetual  war  with  one  another,  or  with  a  nerv- 
ous system  as  fussy  and  spasmodic  as  a  gasoline  engine, 
all  explosion,  noise,  and  noisomeness,  —  such  a  man 
is  fit  only  to  stay  in  the  house,  "  a  jest  to  all  his  foes, 
and  to  his  friends  a  fear."  For  him  there  can  be 
little  rest  or  comfort  until  he  "  sleeps  with  his  fathers." 
This  condition  should  be  impossible  with  a  proper 
system  of  hygienic,  developmental,  and  corrective  gym- 
nastics. Is  not  such  a  system  or  branch  of  education 
the  best  possible  investment  of  a  part  of  the  funds  of 
city  and  state?  Economy  along  this  line  is  surely 
"  penny  wise,  and  pound  foolish." 

But  a  proper  system  of  gymnastics  will  only  slowly 
find  its  way  into  many  of  our  schools.  The  larger  cities 
have  realized  its  absolute  necessity.  But  many  or  most 
of  our  smaller  towns  are  slow  to  appreciate  its  import- 


PHYSICAL  TRAINING  — GYMNASTICS  225 

ance.  Can  the  teacher  do  anything  to  temporarily 
mitigate  the  evil  of  its  neglect  in  schools  and  grades 
where  it  is  most  needed?  She  can  respectfully  urge 
upon  the  superintendent  the  need  of  frequent  pauses 
between  the  recitations  in  addition  to  a  recess  of  rea- 
sonable length.  Usually  this  is  unnecessary,  for  the 
superintendent  is  usually  more  eager  for  such  an  ar- 
rangement than  the  teacher.  The  pauses  should  be 
utilized  to  the  utmost.  In  fair  weather  the  children  can 
be  driven  out  of  doors,  and  told  to  run  and  play  vigor- 
ously. Meanwhile  the  windows  can  be  opened  and  the 
room  thoroughly  ventilated.  If  for  any  reason  it  is 
impracticable  to  clear  the  room,  some  of  the  windows 
can  be  opened.  The  children  can  stand  in  the  aisles 
between  the  desks  and  there  be  taught  to  practice  vigor- 
ously a  few  simple  arm  movements.  Dr.  Sargent  gives 
a  great  variety  of  these,  some  of  which  may  well  be 
selected.  Deep  breathing  may  be  practiced  at  the  same 
time.  The  number  and  range  of  the  movements  can  be 
gradually  increased  in  spite  of  the  hindrance  to  free 
motion  caused  by  the  desks.  This  requires  time,  prac- 
tice, and  training. 

If  this  be  done  twice  or  more  a  day,  it  will  at  least 
remove  the  strain  and  cramp  of  continual  sitting.  It  will 
call  the  blood  from  the  congested  brain  to  the  cold  hands 
and  feet.  During  the  other  pauses  the  pupils  may  walk 
and  chat,  and  thus  gain  rest  and  change.  Such  exercise 
will  cost  a  few  moments  every  day.  But  it  will  more 
than  pay  for  the  shortening  of  the  recitations  by  the 
greater  mental  alertness  and  vigor  of  the  pupils.  The 
only  disadvantage  of  this  proceeding  is  that  many  will 
claim  that  this  slight  mitigation  of  evil  is  all  the  physical 
training  that  the  child  needs.  It  is  better  than  nothing, 


226  GROWTH   AND   EDUCATION 

but  not  good  enough  to  become  an  enemy  of  the 
best. 

Every  school  should  have  its  record  of  measurements 
of  each  pupil.  This  need  not  be  extensive  nor  require 
much  time  or  expensive  apparatus.  There  should  be  a 
card  for  each  pupil,  with  name  and  date  of  birth  at  the 
top.  It  should  have  a  few  vertical  columns  for  success- 
ive annual  or  semiannual  dates  of  measurement,  weight, 
height,  and  lung  capacity.  Chest-girth  might  well  be 
added.  There  should  also  be  a  final  column  showing 
the  number  of  days'  absence  caused  by  sickness.  A 
space  at  the  bottom  of  the  card  might  be  reserved  for 
the  eyesight  and  hearing  of  the  child.  The  test  for  eye- 
sight might  well  be  nothing  more  than  the  ability  to 
read  print  of  a  certain  size  at  a  certain  distance.  The 
only  apparatus  needed  would  be  scales,  a  gauge  for 
measuring  height,  and  a  spirometer.  This  would  an- 
swer the  needs  of  all  the  schools  in  a  small  town  or  vil- 
lage. The  initial  expense  would  be  small  and  need  not 
be  repeated.  The  apparatus,  with  price-list  and  full 
directions  for  its  use,  is  well  described  by  Dr.  Hastings 
in  his  excellent  manual.1 

The  increase  in  weight  and  in  lung  capacity  is  an 
excellent  basis  for  judgment  of  the  vigor  of  the  child. 
Rapid  increase  in  height  is  usually  accompanied  by  weak- 
ness and  disorder,  and  prescribes  care.  Chest-girth  is  also 
a  good  criterion  of  vigor.  The  number  of  days'  absence 
on  account  of  sickness  shows  the  tendencies  of  the  child. 
The  measurements  should  be  compared  with  those  given 
by  Hastings  for  each  age.  Anything  below  his  twenty- 
five  per  cent  line  should  be  considered  very  suspicious. 
If  best  a  card  could  be  given  to  each  child  falling  below 

1  Manual  for  Physical  Measurements. 


PHYSICAL   TRAINING  — GYMNASTICS  227 

this  line  showing  the  amount  and  character  of  his  de- 
ficiency. Boys  are  usually,  and  girls  are  sometimes, 
ambitious  in  this  respect ;  and  the  deficiency  would  often 
be  remedied  by  the  child  or  by  the  directions  of  his 
parents.  By  the  time  the  child  had  reached  even  the 
grammar  grade  the  record  would  give  a  history  of  great 
value. 

Such  measurements  can  be  taken  very  rapidly,  espe- 
cially if  some  of  the  older  pupils  of  the  high  school  could 
write  down  the  measures  as  called  by  the  teachers.  It 
would  require  hardly  more  time  than  that  expended  on 
any  written  test  of  mental  proficiency.  The  moral  effect 
upon  teacher  and  pupil  would  be  excellent.  It  would 
impress  upon  them  the  fact  that  a  symmetrical  physical 
development  is  worthy  of  attention  and  effort,  and  that 
its  value  is  appreciated  by  the  school.  As  the  child 
passed  from  grade  to  grade,  each  teacher  at  the  begin- 
ning of  the  year  would  know  the  condition  and  history 
of  every  child,  and  would  be  prepared  to  show  leniency 
or  firmness,  and  to  give  a  few  hygienic  suggestions. 

Such  a  record  is  not  ideal  in  its  fullness.  It  would  be 
very  incomplete.  It  is  recommended  as  one  which  would 
give  a  large  return  for  a  very  small  expenditure  of  time 
and  money,  and  which  could  easily  be  used  by  teachers 
in  any  small  village.  Other  blank  forms  of  greater 
extent  and  value  are  given  by  Dr.  Hastings. 


CHAPTER  XVI 

MANUAL   TRAINING 

Play  and  gymnastics  are  educational,  in  that  they 
promote  healthy  growth  and  development,  self-control, 
poise,  steadiness,  decision,  courage.  Manual  training  is, 
or  may  be  made,  hygienic,  a  means  of  promoting  health 
and  muscular  power.  For  this  purpose  it  is  inferior  to 
play  or  gymnastics.  It  is  really  almost  as  pure  mental 
training  as  the  study  of  books.  President  Eliot  has 
well  said :  "  The  human  mind  pervades  the  body.  It 
is  not  in  the  head,  but  it  is  all  over  the  body  ;  and  when 
you  train  the  hand,  or  the  eye,  or  the  ear,  you  train  the 
mind."  Governor  Russell  has  said  :  "  Manual  training 
is  mental  training.  In  the  skill  of  the  artist's  hand,  in 
the  methodical,  accurate  movement  of  the  mechanic's 
arm,  in  the  acute  observation  through  the  physician's 
eye  or  ear,  there  is  always  mind.  Never  admit  that 
manual  training  is  anything  distinguished  from,  or  in 
opposition  to,  mental  training." 

We  have  seen  that  in  play  and  gymnastics  some  move- 
ments and  actions  are  very  largely  muscular,  demanding 
little  supervision  or  control  from  the  cerebrum.  They 
are  performed  automatically.  Others,  like  fencing,  are 
exercises  of  the  brain  or  of  the  nervous  system  even 
more  than  of  the  muscle.  Nearly  all  movements  of  the 
leg  become  automatic.  Our  arms,  and  especially  our 
hands,  are  more  richly  innervated  from  far  higher  and 
more  complex  centres:  they  are  capable  of  far  higher 


MANUAL   TRAINING  229 

education.  Their  development  during  thousands  of 
years  has  kept  pace  and  step  with  development  of  intel- 
ligence. Hand  and  mind  are  Siamese  twins.  The  hand 
was  intended  to  be  used  as  the  servant  of  the  planning 
mind.  Their  centres  in  the  brain  stand  in  the  closest  re- 
lation with  the  highest  areas  of  thought.  Thus  anatomy 
teaches  that  manual  exercise  cannot  fail  to  develop 
mental  power. 

The  value  of  manual  training  as  an  aid  to  mental 
growth  is  now  universally  admitted.  The  experiments 
and  observations  of  Dr.  Wey  upon  the  inmates  of  the 
New  York  State  Reformatory  are  well  known.  The 
work  was  especially  beneficial  to  those  who  were  dull 
or  deficient  in  simple  arithmetic.  "  This  defect,"  we 
are  told,  "can  be  entirely  eradicated  through  manual 
processes,  using  tools  as  the  agent  of  the  cure."  We 
are  told  further  that  this  cure  cannot  be  effected  by 
the  mere  "indiscriminate  tool  manipulation";  that  the 
work  must  be  carefully  planned  and  taught,  and  no- 
thing accepted  which  falls  short  of  being  absolutely 
satisfactory.  Of  this  class  of  inmates  sixty  per  cent 
showed  considerable  or  marked  improvement  under  such 
training,  while  forty  per  cent  remained  unimproved. 
How  many  of  these  latter  might  have  been  improved  if 
they  had  received  the  training  earlier  in  life  we  have 
no  means  of  knowing. 

The  reports  of  truant  and  reform  schools,  and  of 
schools  for  defectives,  are  equally  favorable,  often  en- 
thusiastic. The  testimony  of  superintendents  and 
teachers  in  our  best  city  schools  is  to  the  same  effect. 
The  system  seems  to  benefit  all  classes,  rich  and  poor, 
cultured  and  uncultivated.  This  is  only  what  we  might 
confidently  expect.    What  better  purely  mental  disci- 


230  GROWTH   AND   EDUCATION 

pline  can  be  imagined  than  the  close  observation  and 
accurate  perception,  the  judgment  and  planning,  the 
coordination  of  hand,  eye,  and  brain,  involved  in  the 
simplest  work  with  wood  or  iron,  or  even  with  card- 
board. 

Ask  a  teacher  of  science  to  give  up  laboratory  work, 
and  he  will  tell  you  that  teaching  is  impossible  without 
it.  The  student  can  learn  the  laws,  read  and  memorize 
the  descriptions  of  machines  and  experiments,  and  see 
these  in  the  lectures.  But  this  is  not  enough.  The  boy 
must  try  the  experiment  for  himself.  This  fixes  and 
concentrates  the  wandering  thoughts,  and  deepens  the 
impression.  Anything  practical  and  practicable  is 
never  clearly  seen  or  really  understood  by  the  pupil 
until  he  has  seen  it  and  done  it  for  himself.  The  lab- 
oratory method  is  being  more  and  more  extended,  and 
applied  to  all  studies.  And  manual  training  is  becom- 
ing the  means  of  applying  the  laboratory  method  to 
just  as  many  school  studies  as  possible.  Already  maps 
are  not  only  drawn,  but  modeled  in  relief.  Thus  geo- 
graphy has  its  laboratory  as  well  as  chemistry.  The 
breadth  of  the  possible  application  of  the  laboratory 
method  is  only  beginning  to  dawn  upon  us.  When 
eye,  hand,  and  brain  all  work  together  upon  a  pro- 
blem, the  result  of  the  combined  study  is  far  more  than 
three  times  as  great  as  if  any  one  of  them  works  alone. 
We  never  have  really  seen  an  object  until  we  have 
attempted  to  draw  it ;  much  less  do  we  understand 
a  process  which  we  have  never  attempted  to  perform. 
Manual  training  should  be  the  study  not  only  of  school- 
books,  but  of  all  the  activities  of  life,  by  the  laboratory 
method. 

Furthermore,  the  boy  who  recites  a  lesson  in  gram- 


MANUAL   TRAINING  231 

mar  or  arithmetic  "  somewhere  near  right,"  is  usually 
contented  with  his  success.  One  word  is  as  good  as 
another  to  him,  especially  when  the  whole  statement  is 
meaningless.  But  one  who  makes  a  box,  or  even  folds 
a  paper,  so  that  corners  or  edges  are  not  true  is  laughed 
at  by  all  his  comrades.  School  sentiment  condemns  and 
ridicules  poor  manual  work  as  it  never  will  mistakes  in 
recitation. 

As  this  use  of  manual  training  is  universally  ad- 
mitted, we  can  turn  our  attention  to  a  second  even 
greater  advantage,  some  of  whose  aspects  have  not 
received  the  notice  which  they  deserve.  President 
Walker  once  said  :  "  There  was  nothing  in  the  old  order 
[of  education]  which  tended  to  direct  and  develop  the 
executive  faculty  ;  the  power,  that  is,  of  doing  things 
as  distinguished  from  thinking  about  them,  talking 
about  them,  writing  about  them.  No  one  familiar  with 
the  laws  of  mind  will  be  disposed  to  deny  that  there  is 
at  least  a  tendency  in  the  protracted  study  A  any  sub- 
ject, apart  from  putting  that  study  to  a  practical  use, 
toward  producing  a  partial  paralysis  ot  the  will,  shown 
in  a  disposition  to  procrastinate,  to  multiply  distinctions, 
and  to  stand  shivering  on  the  brink  of  action.  Finally, 
the  school  studies  of  that  age  gave  no  play  to  that  con- 
structive passion  which  is  inherent  in  every  healthy 
child's  mind ;  —  a  passion  so  strong  that  it  is  readily  per- 
verted through  lack  of  opportunity  and  exercise,  into 
the  passion  for  destruction,  just  as  any  good  thing  is 
susceptible  of  perversion  into  an  agency  of  evil  or  mis- 
chief."* 

It  may  or  may  not  be  a  disgrace  to  the  scholar  or 
learned  man  that  he  cannot  realize  his  conceptions  in 
action.    It  is  certainly  a  great  misfortune  to  him  and 


232  GROWTH   AND   EDUCATION 

to  the  public.  And  our  schools  and  families  should 
certainly  aim  to  produce  men  and  women  of  power  and 
dexterity  in  action  as  well  as  in  thought  and  logic. 
When  men  and  women  have  become  so  busy  in  think- 
ing and  discussing,  that  they  can  no  longer  act  and 
execute,  the  state  is  in  great  danger.  The  Athens 
where  men  "  spent  their  time  in  nothing  else  but  either 
to  tell  or  to  hear  some  new  thing,"  was  degenerate  and 
senile ;  and  not  much  later  its  schools  of  philosophy 
were  closed  because  their  vaporings  were  no  longer 
worth  hearing. 

It  has  been  said  that  one  half  of  the  food  brought 
into  our  cities  is  wasted  by  the  consumer  by  bad  meth- 
ods of  preparation.  A  large  percentage  of  the  fuel 
used  in  our  kitchens  goes  the  same  way.  Good  cooking 
would  do  more  to  prevent  drinking  among  the  labor- 
ing classes  than  all  the  chapters  on  temperance  in  our 
physiologies.  In  how  many  of  the  schools  in  our  smaller 
country  tovns  is  cooking  taught?  Canned  vegetables 
are  sold  in  farming  communities,  if  not  to  farmers. 
The  school  is  not  responsible  for  this  state  of  affairs. 
But  if  school  and  parents  can  remedy  the  evil  without 
any  detriment  to  the  intellectual  development  of  the 
child,  but  rather  with  advantage,  it  certainly  should 
do  so. 

The  demand  is  continually  arising  from  many  quarters 
that  our  education  should  be  made  more  practical.  The 
word  "  practical "  admits  of  many  different  shades  of 
meaning.  It  may  mean  that  far  more  emphasis  should 
be  laid  in  our  schools  on  work  which  will  prepare  the 
boy  and  girl  to  earn  a  living.  This  is  not  an  unreason- 
able demand  if  it  does  not  interfere  with  teaching  them 
how  to  live  well  also.    If  it  means  that  the  study  which 


MANUAL  TRAINING  233 

bears  directly  on  the  highest  success  in  life  is  better 
than  one  which  influences  our  life  only  very  indirectly 
and  remotely,  the  claim  for  the  most  practical  education 
is  certainly  well  founded. 

In  all  our  schools  we  devote  many  hours  to  anatomy, 
physiology,  and  hygiene.  These  studies  are  of  the 
utmost  importance,  for  they  affect  directly  the  welfare 
of  every  individual.  But  the  lessons  are  almost  always 
forgotten.  They  do  not  find  anything  in  the  child's 
mind  or  conscious  needs  to  which  they  may  attach  them- 
selves. The  child  in  the  cooking-class  learns  and  sees 
and  never  forgets  that  bad  food  is  unfit  to  eat  and  that 
well-prepared  food  is  delicious.  She  soon  finds  that  the 
study  furnishes  abundant  opportunity  for  the  most  care- 
ful thought.  It  is  a  disciplinary  study.  Is  it  neglected 
in  our  country  schools  because  it  is  not  needed,  or 
because  most  of  us  think  that  cooking  is  a  business 
which  requires  little  brains  and  that  it  would  degrade 
the  school  to  devote  money,  time,  and  energy  to  so  base 
a  pursuit?  Work  in  the  chemical  laboratory  is  highly 
respected  and  appreciated.  Is  similar  work  in  learning 
to  properly  prepare  food  so  as  to  sustain  and  lengthen 
life  any  less  honorable  or  beneficent  ?  How  many  girls 
go  from  school  to  shop  or  store,  aud  then  marry,  and 
proceed  through  their  ignorance  to  destroy  the  stomachs 
of  their  children  and  to  drive  their  husbands  to  drink  ? 
Poor  teaching  in  language,  mathematics,  or  history  is 
a  disgrace.  But  sewing  and  cooking  can  be  omitted  from 
the  curriculum  of  the  schools  in  our  small  towns  and 
villages  without  a  word  of  protest  from  anybody.4  Very 
similar  questions  could  be  asked  about  the  course  of 
study  for  the  boy.  Have  we  not  a  lurking  prejudice 
that  anything  like  cooking,  gardening,  carpentering,  or 


234  GROWTH  AND   EDUCATION 

any  form  of  woodwork,  which  can  be  made  of  direct  use 
in  our  daily  life,  ought  on  that  account  to  be  carefully 
kept  out  of  our  schools  ? 

Even  where  manual  training  is  provided,  the  boy  or 
girl  who  expects  to  go  to  college  has  not  time  or  oppor- 
tunity for  the  study.  When  are  these  boys  and  girls 
to  be  taught  to  do  something  beside  fumble  over  their 
books?  Will  they  learn  after  they  leave  college,  when 
their  muscles  have  hardened  and  stiffened  beyond  all 
possibility  of  acquiring  craftsmanship  ?  Or  is  the 
home  responsible  for  all  this?  Shall  we  ever  respect 
these  arts,  sciences,  and  crafts  until  we  dignify  them 
by  careful  study  and  find  how  much  opportunity  for 
the  keenest  thought  and  most  skillful  action  they  con- 
tinually afford?  Does  not  our  system  of  education 
tend  to  train  boys  and  girls  to  be  equally  proud  of 
their  knowledge  of  Latin  and  of  their  ignorance  of  the 
necessary  and  grand  work  of  daily  life  ?  Is  not  such 
training  immoral  ? 

We  respect  others  for  being  able  to  do  what  we  have 
studied  and  attempted,  and  admired,  and  have  tried  to 
do  for  ourselves  and  only  partially  succeeded.  There  is 
to-day  a  deplorable  lack  of  respect  for  skill,  ingenuity, 
and  dexterity  in  manual  work.  Joy  in  work  should  be 
cultivated  in  every  possible  way.  What  the  laborer  needs 
and  rightfully  demands  is  not  charity  nor  sympathy, 
but  respect.  Respect  for  skilled  manual  work  will  do 
more  to  destroy  the  hard  feeling  between  classes  and 
to  maintain  true  democracy  than  all  the  fourth-of-July 
orations.  Jules  Ferry  declared  that  the  ennoblement 
of  manual  work  was  the  great  object  of  France  in  reor- 
ganizing her  system ;  and  that  the  only  practical  way  to 
teach  the  nobility  of  manual  work  was  to  give  it  a  place 


MANUAL   TRAINING  235 

in  the  school  itself.  Now  manual  training  is  no  cure-all 
for  mental,  moral,  and  social  evils.  If  we  expect  the 
impossible  from  it,  we  will  surely  be  disappointed,  and 
then  we  will  probably  lay  the  blame  on  the  study.  Our 
question  is,  How  much  may  we  fairly  and  reasonably 
hope  from  it  ? 

In  our  study  of  "interests"  we  noticed  that  children 
between  seven  and  ten  or  eleven  are  greatly  interested 
in  trades  and  manual  work.  They  wish  to  be  carpen- 
ters, engineers,  farmers,  dressmakers,  etc.  They  have  at 
this  age  a  strong  instinct  to  do,  make,  and  create.  Real 
life  appeals  to  them.  This  is  one  great  advantage  of 
the  kindergarten,  that  the  child  is  living  a  real  life  in 
an  almost  ideal  community  instead  of  preparing  by 
study  of  dry  abstractions  for  one  which  is  so  far  away 
that  it  does  not  appeal  to  him.  The  child  wishes  to 
make  something  which  will  be  of  real  use  and  service 
to  contribute  to  the  family.    He  wishes  to  help. 

If  this  creative,  executive,  helping  instinct  is  not 
gratified,  the  boy  begins  to  lose  interest  in  books  and 
study,  and  profits  little.  The  father  thinks  that  he  is 
wasting  his  time  and  gaining  nothing.  When  he  is 
twelve  or  thirteen,  he  is  taken  from  the  school  and  put 
into  a  shop  or  factory.  This  is  the  time  when  he  should 
begin  to  appreciate  his  studies  and  to  gain  most  from 
them.  In  the  shop  the  boy  no  longer  idles.  He  is  in- 
terested, he  has  "  waked  up."  Boys  sent  from  the  best 
city  schools  because  of  persistent  truancy  to  truant 
schools  where  a  liberal  amount  of  manual  and  indus- 
trial training  is  given,  become  attentive  and  amenable 
to  discipline,  and  sometimes  improve  so  markedly  that 
on  their  return  they  are  promoted  to  a  class  higher  than 
the  one  they  left. 


236  GROWTH   AND   EDUCATION 

Such  a  boy,  or  almost  any  boy,  is  given  the  opportun- 
ity to  do  some  handwork  in  the  school.  He  is  inter- 
ested at  once.  It  appeals  to  a  natural  instinct,  as  arith- 
metic and  geography  cannot  do.  He  is  set  to  making 
a  box.  The  interest  arouses  his  will  as  no  external 
pressure  could.  He  soon  finds  that  he  cannot  finish 
it  in  a  moment  or  an  hour.  It  is  a  more  complex 
and  difficult  matter  than  he  had  thought.  He  must 
"  buckle  down  to  it,"  make  his  preparations,  measure- 
ments, calculations.  This  not  only  stimulates  the  will, 
but  gives  him  the  power  of  sustained  effort,  the  great- 
est blessing  to  any  boy  or  man.  He  finds  that  a  mis- 
take at  any  point  in  the  preparation  may  spoil  the 
whole  work.  He  grows  careful,  looks  ahead,  takes  pains. 
Is  there  any  better  training  for  giving  him  a  strong 
and  sound  will,  which  is  the  foundation  of  all  moral  de- 
velopment? And  is  there  any  better  mental  training 
than  his  accurate,  painstaking  observation,  calculation, 
and  work?  Making  the  box  reminds  him  of  something 
else  which  he  would  like  to  do,  something  finer  or  more 
difficult.  He  is  roused  to  a  new  and  greater  effort, 
which  results  in  mental  growth  and  strength.  He  makes 
himself  work,  and  enjoys  it.  You  can,  perhaps,  make 
him  work  at  his  books.  But  as  soon  as  the  external 
pressure  is  removed,  he  ceases  his  efforts.  You  are 
really  only  putting  moral  shoulder-braces  on  him,  which 
will  leave  him  weaker  than  he  was  before,  instead  of 
strengthening  his  muscles.  The  results  of  manual  train- 
ing are  of  permanent  value. 

Very  likely  the  boy  is  making  the  box  for  his  father 
or  mother.  It  is  his  first  tangible  contribution,  perhaps, 
to  the  comfort  and  welfare  of  the  family.  The  ex- 
perience results  in  an  appreciation  of  his  own  possible 


MANUAL  TRAINING  237 

worth  and  usefulness,  as  well  as  in  stronger  love  for  his 
parents. 

The  boy  who  has  some  such  training  during  five  or 
six  of  the  formative  years  of  his  life  will  never  rest 
content  with  dreams  and  abstract  concepts.  The  in- 
stinct to  realize  his  conceptions  and  ideals  will  remain 
alive  and  powerful,  instead  of  having  aborted  and  died 
through  lack  of  exercise.  He  will  never  see  carpenter, 
blacksmith,  or  mechanic  doing  a  fine  piece  of  work  with- 
out appreciating  it,  gaining  enjoyment  and  giving  pleas- 
ure at  the  same  time.  He  will  respect  honest  work  and 
appreciate  the  effort  which  it  requires.  He  will  recog- 
nize shams,  and  flimsy  and  cheap  products,  and  have 
little  respect  for  idleness  or  incompetence.  The  grand 
cathedrals  of  Europe  were  reared  by  artisans  who  loved, 
and  appreciated,  and  did,  honest  and  fine  work. 

Manual  training  is  most  needed  perhaps  by  the  chil- 
dren of  the  well  to  do  and  cultured.  But  its  results  will 
be  most  and  most  quickly  apparent  in  those  of  a  differ- 
ent class.  Mr.  Adler  tells  us  that  children  fall  into  one 
of  two  great  classes.  There  are  some  who  are  quick  with 
their  books  as  we  say,  and  who  enjoy  them.  They  learn 
words  easily,  and  have  a  gift  of  using  them.  Then  there 
are  other  boys  to  whom  the  book  is  a  burden,  and  a 
composition  or  essay  almost  as  much  of  a  torment  as 
it  is  to  the  teacher  who  has  to  correct  it.  Such  a  boy 
often  finds  it  almost  impossible  to  memorize  the  pages 
of  lessons  which  are  assigned  to  him.  He  will  almost 
surely  lose  interest  in  school  work  of  the  ordinary  kind. 
He  is  a  trial  to  his  teacher,  who  is  tempted  to  consider 
him  a  dunce,  and  he  grows  hopeless  and  careless.  He 
escapes  from  school  as  soon  as  he  can. 

Yet  this  boy  will  often  do  excellent  work  in  drawing 


238  GROWTH  AND   EDUCATION 

or  modeling,  in  handling  wood  or  iron.  The  fact  that 
even  he  can  do  something  well,  or  better  than  all  the 
others,  and  thus  win  the  praise  of  his  teacher  and  parents 
and  the  respect  of  his  comrades  is  a  discovery  of  inesti- 
mable value  to  him.  He  can  do  one  thing  well  and  now 
he  has  some  courage  to  attempt  others.  He  has  waked 
up,  has  "  found  himself,"  has  discovered  his  possibilities. 
He  becomes  a  new  boy.  He  is  no  longer  a  detriment  to 
the  school  and  the  worry  of  his  teacher. 

Such  a  boy,  indeed  nearly  all  boys,  will  accomplish 
more  learning,  if  they  devote  a  part  of  their  time  to 
manual  training  than  if  they  spend  the  whole  of  the 
school  hours  poring  or  dreaming  over  their  books. 

Evidently  one,  if  not  the  chief,  purpose  of  education 
is  to  enable  us  to  express  clearly  our  best  thoughts  and 
conceptions.  Grammar,  composition,  and  some  other 
studies  are  valuable  mainly  or  entirely  as  they  make  us 
masters  of  the  art  of  verbal  expression.  But  thought 
and  learning,  personality  and  character  still  more,  can 
be  expressed  far  more  effectively  in  deeds  than  in  words. 
The  painter  of  portraits  or  landscapes  has  his  place  as 
well  as  the  biographer  or  poet.  The  practical  inventor 
is  needed  at  least  as  much  as  the  scientific  student  or 
investigator.  When  the  investigator  can  apply  his  re- 
sults, his  usefulness  to  society  is  more  than  doubled. 
The  doer  of  the  word  is  far  more  effective  than  the 
preacher  or  orator. 

Why  should  not  expression  through  handwork  be  as 
worthy  of  cultivation  as  rhetorical  expression  through 
words  ?  If  the  child  can  be  trained  and  become  accus- 
tomed to  express  his  thoughts  in  both  ways  rather  than 
in  one,  will  it  not  conduce  to  clearness  and  accuracy  of 
perception  and  concept  ?    Will  it  not  develop  and  train 


MANUAL  TRAINING  239 

that  finest  and  highest  power,  the  scientific  imagina- 
tion, which  is  often  stunted  or  destroyed  by  our  study 
of  books  and  words  ? 

Hence  the  best  educators  have  always  insisted  on  the 
principle  of  some  such  variety.  Horace  Mann  said  that 
if  teachers  would  give  one  half  of  the  school-hours  to 
creating  a  desire  to  learn,  more  would  be  accomplished 
than  by  giving  all  the  time  to  book-work.  Froebel  in- 
sisted on  the  importance  of  alternating  study  and  work. 
Nowhere  has  this  been  more  fully  and  advantageously 
emphasized  than  in  Jewish  education.  Says  the  Tal- 
mud :  "  The  study  of  the  law  without  occupation  of 
labor  will  finally  be  interrupted  and  end  in  sin."  "The 
father  who  does  not  teach  his  child  a  trade  brings  him 
up  to  be  a  robber."  Let  us  not  forget  that  Spinoza 
made  spectacles,  and  that  Paul  was  a  tent-maker.  We 
must  be  careful  not  to  confuse  manual  and  industrial 
training.  Each  has  its  place.  That  any  nation  which 
is  striving  for  the  first  place  in  art  and  commerce 
should  fail  to  recognize  the  absolute  necessity  of  both 
is  almost  incredible.  Industrial  training  is  for  the  boy 
or  girl  who  has  already  decided  to  follow  a  life  of 
manual  or  industrial  work  in  some  special  craft  or 
trade.  Its  tendency  is  toward  specialization  as  really 
as  is  that  of  law  or  medicine.  It  is  intended  to  aid  the 
worker  to  the  greatest  success  or  proficiency  in  one 
line.  Manual  training  is  intended  to  develop  the  pow- 
ers for  any  situation  in  life.  Its  effect  is  to  broaden 
the  mind  and  to  open  doors  to  new  possibilities  and 
careers.  It  is  a  valuable  preparation  for  technical  or 
industrial  training,  but  equally  beneficial  to  the  man 
who  will  never  handle  a  tool  in  after-life.  Indeed  the 
student  needs  it  more  than  the  artisan. 


240  GROWTH   AND   EDUCATION 

It  is  equally  useful  to  the  girl,  and  perhaps  she  needs 
it  even  more  than  the  boy.  Female  teachers  are  some- 
times criticised  because  they  do  not  feel,  and  hence 
cannot  teach,  the  connection  between  the  information 
of  the  daily  lesson  and  life  outside  of  the  school.  Hence 
their  instruction  is  likely  to  be  wordy  and  bookish. 
The  criticism  may  be  unfounded.  But  the  education 
of  our  girls  to-day  leads  us  to  fear  that  it  may  well 
be  true.  The  most  that  the  average  girl  learns  of 
life  during  her  school  years  is  at  most  a  little  of  the 
drudgery  of  housework.  Home-making  has  never  been 
sufficiently  studied  to  be  considered  an  art,  much  less  a 
science.  Of  other  forms  and  kinds  of  work  the  girl  learns 
nothing.  She  cannot  reasonably  be  expected  to  teach 
that  of  which  she  has  never  had  any  experience,  or 
which  she  has  never  had  the  opportunity  even  to  ob- 
serve. As  long  as  teaching  remains  practically  mere 
instruction,  it  will  be  the  only  field  open,  and  the  most 
attractive,  to  those  men  and  women  who  are  totally 
devoid  of  actual,  experimental  knowledge  of  everyday 
life  and  work. 

If  this  is  true  to  any  extent  of  our  teachers  it  is 
probably  true  also  of  most  girls  who  do  not  go  into  the 
normal  school  but  to  college,  or  who  return  home  at  the 
close  of  the  high-school  course.  If  her  executive  ability 
and  power  to  plan  a  piece  of  work  have  never  been  tested 
or  developed,  if  she  has  never  even  learned  that  work 
must  be  planned,  she  finds  the  cares  of  a  household  an 
exceedingly  difficult  problem,  not  to  say  a  heavy  bur- 
den. Now  she  must  plan,  calculate,  administer,  and  direct. 
The  great  wonder  is  that  the  American  girl  succeeds 
as  well  as  she  does  under  circumstances  for  which  her 
education  and  most  of  her  home  training  have  unfitted 


MANUAL  TRAINING  241 

her.  Here  is  a  problem  which  taxes  the  most  vigorous 
thought  and  keenest  ingenuity  of  parents,  teachers,  and 
educators.  If  our  lower  grades,  and  most  of  the  classes 
in  the  higher  ones,  are  to  be  taught  by  young  women, 
the  problem  must  be  solved,  or  the  rising  generation 
will  suffer  harm. 

But  manual  training  must  be  skillfully  and  wisely 
adapted  to  the  age  and  abilities  of  the  pupils.  That 
which  is  exceedingly  interesting  to  the  child  in  kinder- 
garten may  prove  stale  and  unprofitable  to  the  gram- 
mar grade  or  even  the  primary  class.  The  kindergarten 
teachers  have  solved  their  problem  fairly  well.  It  remains 
to  discover  by  experiment  and  careful  thought  just 
what  exercises  will  be  most  profitable  in  every  higher 
grade.  There  would  seem  to  be  no  reason  why  work  in 
bending  iron  could  not  be  widely  introduced  with  much 
profit.  Even  the  folding  and  pasting  of  paper  so  as  to 
make  various  forms  of  solid  geometry  might  be  useful. 

But  the  growing  boy  and  girl  demand  more  resistent 
material.  Gardening  may  not  be  manual  training  in 
the  exact  sense  of  the  word.  But  what  it  lacks  in  this 
direction  is  compensated  by  the  aesthetic  development 
and  love  of  nature  which  it  stimulates  to  so  high  a  degree. 
Especially  in  our  small  country  schools  in  poor  neigh- 
borhoods the  teacher  may  well  venture  now  and  then 
to  try  an  experiment  which  seems  to  be  suited  to  the 
needs  of  the  community.  If  it  does  not  realize  her  ideal, 
or  satisfy  all  her  wishes,  it  will  be  vastly  better  than 
nothing. 


CHAPTER  XVII 

RETROSPECT   AND    SUMMARY 

At  the  risk  of  some*  or  much  repetition  we  may  now 
turn  back  and  trace  the  general  line  of  the  results  of 
our  study  of  the  physical  growth  and  development  of  the 
child. 

The  strain  of  modern  life  makes  it  essential  that  we 
should  fortify  him  far  more  to-day  than  was  necessary 
one  hundred  or  even  fifty  years  ago.  Perfect  physical 
health  is  an  absolute  necessity.  Unless  every  part  is 
"  of  equal  strength  and  in  smooth  working  order," 
most  of  our  vital  energy  is  used  to  overcome  internal 
resistance,  or  dissipates  in  fret  and  worry.  We  need 
all  the  buoyancy,  courage,  and  hope  which  come  from 
the  consciousness  of  vigor.  Health  is  impossible  with- 
out a  full  development  of  all  the  vital  organs :  stomach, 
heart,  and  lungs,  as  well  as  brain. 

We  have  seen  that  these  vital  visceral  organs  orig- 
inated in  response  to  the  demands  and  stimuli  of  the 
developing  muscular  system,  before  mind  and  brain 
were  on  the  throne.  They  can  be  developed  only 
through  physical  exercise  in  hygienic  surroundings. 
Health  can  be  maintained  by  the  adult  only  through 
vigorous  muscular  exercise  in  the  open  air.  Much 
more  is  the  same  exercise  essential  to  its  attainment. 
The  period  when  our  internal  organs  most  need  such 
exercise,  and  best  respond  to  it  by  healthy  growth,  ex- 
tends through  infancy  and  childhood. 


RETROSPECT  AND   SUMMARY  243 

Our  brief  study  of  embryology  has  taught  us  that 
during  these  earlier  years  we  must  heed  and  follow 
Nature's  suggestions.  The  same  is  probably  true  of 
adult  life  as  well,  but  here  Nature's  requirements  are 
not  always  as  clear  and  explicit. 

Nature  evidently  requires  of  the  infant  and  young 
child  that  it  should  grow  as  fast  and  as  far  as  possible. 
Growth  is  the  primary  and  chief  essential.  It  should 
be  made  the  chief  business  of  these  years,  for  without 
it  development  is  impossible.  This  is  so  self-evident 
that  we  often  forget  it.  A  little  more  growth  may,  and 
often  does,  make  all  the  difference  between  the  average 
man  and  the  leader  of  extraordinary  physical,  mental, 
and  moral  strength  and  ability.  Every  organ  should  be 
allowed  time  for  its  stage  of  pure  growth,  and  should 
receive  exercise  only  when  it  craves  it,  and  not  before. 
We  must  not  attempt  still  further  to  hurry  Nature 
when  she  is  already  hastening  the  process  of  develop- 
ment just  as  far  as  is  safe.  We  allow  the  baby's  legs  to 
grow  and  gain  strength  before  we  permit  or  encourage 
him  to  walk.  We  should  certainly  be  equally  cautious 
and  wise  with  the  most  complex  and  delicate  portions 
of  the  child's  brain.  When  the  organ  begins  to  crave 
exercise,  we  should  furnish  suitable  kinds  and  amounts 
fitted  to  the  stage  of  growth  and  development,  and 
varied  from  year  to  year  as  maturity  hastens  on.  To 
deny  an  exercise  which  the  body  craves  and  needs  to- 
day, and  substitute  for  this  one  which  is  suited  to  a 
later  stage  or  to  a  different  organ,  involves  both  loss  and 
harm. 

The  chief  business  of  the  educator  viewed  from  this 
standpoint  is  to  find  the  stage  of  growth  and  develop- 
ment of  each  organ  at  each  year  or  epoch  of  life,  and 


244  GROWTH  AND  EDUCATION 

then  to  furnish  the  kinds  and  amounts  of  exercise 
which  will  best  promote  growth  and  development  at 
that  epoch.  For  certain  organs  during  infancy  we  can 
do  little  more  than  make  conditions  favorable  and 
remove  hindrances  and  dangers.  During  the  sensory 
epoch  we  will  provide  material  and  occupation  to  exer- 
cise the  sense-organs.  When  the  muscular  crave  exer- 
cise we  will  satisfy  them,  and  thus  promote  their 
development  and  that  of  all  the  organs  dependent  upon 
them.  When  at  ten  or  twelve  the  logical  powers  of 
thought  and  reasoning  begin  to  betray  their  need  of 
exercise  through  awakening  interests  and  questions,  we 
will  follow  them.  /We  will  not  ask  that  the  child 
should  think  or  act  as  a  man,  or  try  to  impose  upon  him 
methods  or  systems  of  training  suited  only  to  the  adult 
body  and  mind.  We  will  remember  that  his  constitu- 
tion undergoes  marked  changes  at  successive  epochs  of 
life. 

If  this  reasoning  is  correct,  and  it  seems  to  be  only 
the  dictate  of  the  plainest  common  sense,  always  known 
but  not  fully  recognized  and  realized,  it  is  clear  that 
physical  development  is  the  chief  business  of  the  young 
child  both  at  school  and  at  home.  For  few  really  men- 
tal interests  appear  until  some  years  later.  It  is  per- 
haps too  much  to  ask  that  up  to  this  age  play  should 
form  the  largest  part  of  his  school  duties.  It  should 
certainly  be  given  a  large  place,  and  its  importance  and 
value  cannot  easily  be  overestimated. 

That  some  form  of  physical  exercise  is  equally  essen- 
tial to  the  health  and  development  of  the  boy  and  girl 
during  the  critical  and  all-important  pubertal  years  is 
evident  to  any  one  who  has  made  even  a  superficial 
study  of  this  period.    The  high  rate  of  morbidity  due 


RETROSPECT  AND   SUMMARY  245 

largely  to  the  condition  of  the  blood  overloaded  with 
the  waste  products  of  organic  growth  and  readjustment, 
is  proof  positive  of  the  need  of  abundant  exercise  in  the 
open  air.  The  rapid  increase  of  vital  capacity  between 
the  ages  of  nine  and  fourteen  in  girls  who  have  gym- 
nastics, as  well  as  its  small  and  irregular  increase  in 
the  average  girl,  is  a  demonstration  of  her  needs. 
When  her  future  happiness,  health,  and  usefulness  de- 
pend upon  her  successful  development  and  metamor- 
phosis during  these  trying  years  of  accelerated  growth 
in  height,  is  it  too  much  to  say  that  failure  to  satisfy 
this  need  of  exercise  is  nothing  less  than  criminal  neg- 
ligence ?  Even  in  the  high  school  hygienic  and  devel- 
opmental training  are  still  needed  to  mature  and  harden 
the  tissues.  Still  we  must  bear  in  mind  and  guard 
against  the  rising  death-rate  at  nineteen  and  twenty,  the 
final  result  of  failure  to  pass  Nature's  examinations. 
The  exercise  must  be  adequate  in  quantity  as  well  as 
in  kind.  Two  half-hours  in  the  week  for  all  forms  of 
physical  exercise  are  a  mockery  of  the  child's  needs. 
In  many  of  our  schools  that  which  may  possibly  be 
a  little  better  than  nothing  is  often  the  worst  foe  of 
that  which  is  good  and  right.  It  is  not  best  to  soothe 
our  consciences  when  we  are  failing  to  do  our  clear  and 
evident  duty. 

But  some  will  possibly  still  maintain  that  all  this  is 
the  duty  of  the  home,  and  that  the  school  is  in  no  way 
responsible  for  the  physical  part  of  education.  It  is  true 
that  the  home  should  do  far  more  for  the  health  and 
vigor  than  it  is  now  doing.  We  parents  are  not  suf- 
ficiently awake  to  our  duties  and  responsibilities  in  this 
and  in  some  other  directions.  But,  especially  during 
childhood,  vigorous  exercise  is  needed  frequently  and 


246  GROWTH  AND  EDUCATION 

in  small  doses.  The  school  session  occupies  more  hours 
than  the  child  should  spend  without  frequent  change  of 
position  and  opportunity  to  change  the  direction  of  the 
circulation  of  the  blood.  This  should  often  be  drawn 
from  the  gorged  brain  to  the  hands  and  feet,  especially 
^during  puberty.  A  short  recess,  often  wasted  in  dawd- 
ling, is  no  sufficient  relief.  But  this  is  not  the  most 
important  reason  for  pleading  for  liberal  physical  exer- 
cise during  school  hours. 

Fifty  years  ago  three  partners  were  responsible  for 
the  education  of  the  child.  These  were  the  farm,  the 
home,  and  the  school.  On  the  farm  the  child  enjoyed 
an  abundance  of  open  air  and  of  physical  training 
suited  to  his  age  and  needs.  Every  farm  was  a  hive  of 
manual  training.  Nature  study  was  compulsory ;  school 
gardens  were  entirely  unnecessary.  Almost  as  soon  as 
the  child  could  walk  he  had  his  work  and  duties.  These 
were  no  artificial  exercises  prepared  with  much  thought 
and  ingenuity.  They  came  to  him  necessarily  from  the 
conditions  of  his  life.  He  did  a  boy's  work  as  soon 
as  he  could,  and  aspired  to  do  that  of  a  man.  He  was 
a  partner  in  the  household,  his  help  was  needed  and  had 
value ;  and  he  usually  willingly  accepted  the  responsi- 
bility. He  learned  to  make  his  own  toys  or  to  go  without 
them.  He  learned  to  meet  new  emergencies  day  by  day. 
He  was  compelled  to  be  self-reliant,  resourceful,  ingen- 
ious, as  well  as  economical,  industrious,  patient,  and 
persevering.  The  short  term  of  study  gave  him  a  suf- 
ficient acquaintance  with  books  so  that  he  was  always 
hungry  for  more.  What  he  had  learned  during  the  three 
months  of  winter  he  remembered,  reviewed,  thought 
over,  and  assimilated  during  the  remainder  of  the  year. 
This  system  provided  for  a  symmetrical  physical  and 


RETROSPECT  AND  SUMMARY  247 

mental  growth  and  development,  and  for  gain  in  power 
and  efficiency, 

We  hear  much  of  the  debt  of  our  fathers  to  the 
"  little  red  school-house,"  and  the  school  deserves  nearly- 
all  the  good  and  some  of  the  bad  which  has  been  said 
about  it.  But  the  debt  of  New  England  to  the  farm  as 
a  means  of  education  has  never  been  properly  and  suffi- 
ciently recognized.  Many  who  owe  most  of  their  success 
to  its  hard  training  remember  only  its  shadows  and  de- 
privations. Had  farm  life  persisted,  our  present  system 
and  schools  would  meet  the  needs  of  the  child  fully 
and  excellently.  But  this  most  advantageous  partner- 
ship has  been  dissolved ;  and  for  the  present,  at  least,  we 
cannot  hope  to  renew  it.  Even  where  the  farm  remains, 
the  life  and  atmosphere,  though  beneficent,  is  not  what 
it  was  one  hundred  years  ago.  Most  of  us  live  in  towns 
or  cities.  Here  it  is  almost  impossible  for  us  to  find 
needed  and  useful  manual  work  for  our  children  to  do. 
Many  of  the  tasks  which  we  assign  are  imposed  arti- 
ficially rather  than  a  natural  outgrowth  of  healthy  and 
necessary  conditions.  The  boy  and  girl  have  but  a  very 
small  share  in  the  duties  and  responsibilities  of  the 
household.  Even  these  few  duties  are  performed  under 
the  eyes  and  direction  of  the  parent,  and  give  little 
opportunity  for  initiative,  resource,  or  ingenuity.  Almost 
their  only  industry  is  study. 

The  diffusion  of  wealth  has  removed  from  many  the 
spur  of  necessity,  and  has  led  them  to  think  that  the 
world  owes  them  not  only  a  living  but  the  luxuries  of 
life.  Many  expect  to  be  fortunate  enough  some  day  to 
get  something  or  a  good  deal  for  nothing.  The  new  con- 
ditions, and  some  of  the  evil  results,  are  not  the  fault  of 
the  parents.    The  loss  of  the  opportunities  furnished  by 


248  GROWTH   AND   EDUCATION 

the  farm  has  greatly  decreased  the  educational  efficiency 
of  the  home.  And  the  decrease  is  of  a  kind  which  most 
surely  and  directly  affects  the  will  and  character  of  the 
child. 

Of  the  three  members  of  the  original  educational 
partnership,  one  has  retired,  a  second  has  lost  severely 
in  efficiency  through  the  withdrawal  of  the  first,  and 
the  third  remains  with  vastly  increased  burdens  and  re- 
sponsibilities. But  home  and  school  must  in  some  way 
compensate  for  the  loss  of  the  farm.  Otherwise  the 
next  generation  will  surely  fail  to  equal  the  record  of 
the  past,  much  less  to  surpass  it.  This  work  of  com- 
pensation will  tax  all  the  powers  of  both  home  and 
school.  They  must  work  together  and  earnestly.  Neither 
one  can  be  allowed  to  throw  its  share  of  the  new  bur- 
den on  the  shoulders  of  the  other.  There  is  more  than 
enough  work  for  both. 

Under  these  circumstances  it  is  not  strange  that  we 
hear  criticisms  of  the  results  of  our  system  of  education. 
These  are  often  too  sweeping  and  severe.  The  child 
of  to-day  probably  reads,  spells,  and  ciphers  as  well  as 
his  grandfather  could  at  his  age.  Some  of  us  have  for- 
gotten the  deficiencies  and  failures  of  our  childhood. 
But  when  the  business  man  complains  that  the  boy  of 
to-day  is  lacking  in  perseverance,  resource,  ingenuity, 
and  efficiency,  we  have  reason  to  fear  that  there  is 
some  ground  for  his  complaint. 

A  teacher  at  a  training-school  said :  "  Give  me  country 
girls  for  my  classes.  They  have  red  blood  and  will  not 
balk."  Such  red-blooded  pupils  who  are  ready  to 
grapple  with  any  task  or  problem  are  already  educated 
in  some  most  important  mental  and  moral  respects. 
The  presence  of  such  pupils  gives  a  tone  and  atmo- 


RETROSPECT  AND   SUMMARY  249 

sphere  to  a  class  which  cannot  be  spared.  Yet  is  it 
fair  to  expect  that  the  average  town-bred  pupil  will 
show  all  these  traits  which  are  the  product  of  totally 
different  conditions  during  early  life  ?  Will  the  blood 
be  as  red  in  the  child  whose  only  duty  is  "to  eat  his 
meals"  as  in  one  who  lives  and  works  in  the  open  air 
from  one  end  of  the  day  and  year  to  the  other  ? 

The  school  year  has  already  doubled  or  trebled  in 
length,  and  more  and  better  books  and  courses  of  study 
have  been  added.  The  course  has  certainly  been  greatly, 
perhaps  too  much,  enriched.  But  all  this  increase  of 
book-work  and  of  learning  does  not  meet  the  difficulty 
which  we  are  considering ;  it  probably  increases  it.  Es- 
pecially in  the  lower  grades  the  child  is  kept  over  his 
books  longer  than  he  should  be.  We  overexercise  his 
brain,  while  we  cramp  his  muscles.  The  result  is  that 
he  learns  to  dislike  books,  and  to  form  the  worst  possible 
habits  of  study.  These  habits  often  become  so  fixed  as 
to  be  practically  unchangeable.  In  the  schools  of  many 
of  our  towns  and  cities  the  child  is  engaged  in  mental 
work  nearly  throughout  the  session ;  at  least,  he  is  sup- 
posed to  be  so  busied.  Yet  often  he  acquires  no  more 
learning  than  the  child  who  goes  to  school  only  one  half 
the  day.  He  probably  learns  much  less  than  the  aver- 
age child  would  under  the  system  of  the  industrial 
schools  where  outdoor  work  and  manual  training  oc- 
cupy a  large  part  of  the  time. 

He  has  almost  no  time  to  assimilate  what  he  learns. 
He  would  be  in  great  danger  of  mental  dyspepsia  from 
the  cramming  process,  if  he  were  not  saved  from  this  fate 
by  speedily  forgetting  most  of  what  he  has  acquired.  If 
one  third  to  one  half  of  the  time  now  devoted  to  book 
work  were  given  to  play,  gymnastics,  school-gardens,  etc., 


250  GROWTH  AND  EDUCATION 

the  child  would  probably  learn  more  than  he  does  now. 
He  would  work  with  far  less  weariness  and  fatigue,  and 
with  far  greater  interest  and  enthusiasm. 

The  advantages  to  the  mental  powers  of  such  a 
change  through  the  increased  physical  stamina  of  the 
child  are  evident.  We  remember  Schmid-Monnard's 
telling  us  that  the  growth  of  the  German  child  is  always 
lessened  and  sometimes  completely  arrested  during  the 
first  year  of  school  life.  He  emphasizes  the  danger  to 
the  youngest  and  most  precocious  children,  and  tells  us 
that  a  larger  proportion  of  these  drop  out  by  the  way. 
When  we  arrest  growth  we  strike  at  the  root  of  all 
possible  future  development,  as  well  as  of  power  and 
efficiency.  We  can  hardly  appreciate  the  advantages 
which  would  result  from  replacing  a  system  which  ham- 
pers growth  by  one  which  favors  and  fosters  it.  Every 
ounce  of  strength  and  vitality  gained  during  infancy  and 
early  childhood  increases  at  compound  interest  during 
each  successive  year. 

If  we  make  the  fullest  possible  use  of  the  years 
between  six  and  ten  or  eleven  to  store  up  material  and 
strength  against  the  pubertal  metamorphosis,  we  insure 
the  child  against  heavy  loss  at  this  trying  period.  Gil- 
bert's observations  lead  us  to  suspect  that  the  increase 
of  the  girl's  lung  capacity  by  suitable  exercise  during 
these  years  would  far  more  than  compensate  for  the 
time  used  in  this  way.  The  greater  vigor  and  power  of 
the  well-oxygenated  brain  would  more  than  make  up 
for  the  loss  of  time.  We  do  not  know  to  what  extent 
morbidity  might  be  decreased.  We  know  only  that  we 
should  thus  remove  one  of  its  most  fruitful  causes  or 
occasions.  And  we  know  that  at  this  time  the  ounce  of 
prevention  is  worth  many  pounds  of  cure. 


A^- 


RETROSPECT  AND   SUMMARY  251 


If  we  could  bring  our  boys  and  girls  into  the  high 
school  in  perfect  physical  condition,  with  interest  unim- 
paired or  increased,  and  with  good  habits  of  study,  they 
could  probably  accomplish  more  than  they  do  now  and 
still  have  time  for  the  manual  training  and  gymnastics 
which  are  so  much  needed. 

If  manual  and  physical  training  are  profitable  to  the 
average  boy  and  girl,  they  are  absolutely  essential  to  the 
children  of  our  business  and  professional  classes,  and 
to  all  those  who  have  any  congenital  tendencies  toward 
nervous  weakness  or  disease.  Such  children  are  often 
of  great  mental  promise,  and  should  be  saved  and 
strengthened  for  the  service  of  the  community  and  the 
state.  They  are  far  more  numerous  than  we  suspect. 
Under  the  present  system  the  school  cannot  possibly  do 
all  that  it  might  and  should  to  increase  their  physical, 
and  thus  their  mental,  stamina. 

Thus  far  we  have  considered  education  only  as  a 
means  of  increasing  learning.  But  this  is  its  least 
important  element.  Physical  and  manual  training  would 
give  a  better  and  more  complete  discipline,  and  hence 
a  more  athletic  mind.  The  best  method  of  increasing 
muscular  strength  is  by  periods  of  active  exercise  alter- 
nating with  those  of  rest  or  of  complete  change.  An 
hour  a  day  properly  used  in  vigorous  athletic  exercise 
will  produce  a  larger  amount  of  stronger  muscle  than 
a  half  day's  steady  work  sawing  wood.  The  men  who 
do  the  most  hard  and  heavy  work  are  not  always  the 
strongest.  Frequently  they  are  surpassed  in  strength 
and  endurance  by  the  athlete  who  has  done  less  and 
lighter  work,  but  who  has  thrown  every  ounce  of  will 
and  vigor  into  the  exercise.  The  same  law  applies  to 
mental  development.    But  the  higher  mental  centres 


252  GROWTH  AND  EDUCATION 

are  far  less  mature  during  the  years  of  rapid  growth 
and  are  far  more  easily  and  quickly  fatigued  than  the 
muscles.  Hence  we  must  be  on  our  guard  lest  we  over- 
strain them. 

Once  again  let  us  remind  ourselves  that  the  right 
amount  of  mental  as  well  as  of  physical  exercise  is  not 
what  the  child  can  endure  without  evident  fatigue,  but 
what  will  be  most  profitable  for  the  growth  and  further 
development  of  very  immature  tissues.  The  line  of 
profit  lies  far  within  the  line  of  fatigue,  for  it  is  not  yet 
the  time  to  train  for  endurance.  And  as  the  nervous 
tissues  of  the  higher  centres  of  the  brain  are  far  less 
mature  and  tough  than  those  of  the  muscles,  their  pe- 
riods of  vigorous  exercise  should  be  made  correspondingly 
shorter.  This  is  a  fact  which  teachers  and  parents  alike 
are  very  prone  to  forget. 

The  adult  student  who  trains  and  accustoms  himself 
to  spend  as  many  hours  as  he  can  endure  over  his  books 
or  any  form  of  mental  work  rarely  gains  as  alert,  fresh, 
and  vigorous  a  mind  as  the  man  who  expends  the  same 
amount  of  energy  and  effort  in  one  half  of  the  time. 
And  the  quality  of  the  work  of  the  athletic  mind  is 
always  far  higher.  It  has  not  the  taint  of  the  smell  of 
midnight  oil,  not  to  say  smoke.  Hence  periods  of  mental 
exercise  of  children  should  be  shortened  and  interrupted 
by  periods  of  rest  and  change  even  more  than  in  phys- 
ical gymnastics.  We  have  already  noticed  the  advant- 
ages of  enjoyment  and  zest  in  work  which  come  from 
change  and  variety. 

During  the  last  years  of  the  high-school  course  the 
periods  of  mental  work  may  well  be  lengthened.  But 
even  here  it  is  better  to  cultivate  habits  of  hard  rather 
than  of  too  prolonged  study.    The  power  of  concentra- 


RETROSPECT  AND   SUMMARY  253 

tion  and  application  is  the  highest  attainment.  If  the 
periods  of  study  are  too  long  the  student  even  in  the 
high  school  will  probably  lose  in  concentration  more 
than  he  can  gain  by  the  amount  of  work.  Here  the 
high-school  teacher  can  learn  much  by  studying  the 
methods  of  the  successful  athletic  trainer. 

But  the  development  of  the  will  is  surely  more 
important  than  that  of  the  intellect.  This  is  the  part  of 
education  which  has  suffered  most  from  modern  con- 
ditions, and  any  compensation  which  the  school  can 
make  is  certainly  of  the  greatest  importance  and  value. 
Will-power  and  muscle  are  closely  associated  and  re- 
lated ;  and,  especially  in  the  child,  the  will  is  most  easily 
reached  and  strengthened  through  the  muscles.  Long 
before  the  brain  is  mature  enough  to  receive  anything 
but  harm  and  loss  from  close  or  long  application,  the 
sturdier,  heavy  muscles  may  be  held  to  a  fair  amount 
of  steady  and  persistent  effort.  But  the  influence  of 
physical  and  manual  training  upon  the  will  has  already 
been  sufficiently  emphasized  in  preceding  chapters. 

Changed  conditions  require  that  our  schools  should 
shift  somewhat  the  emphasis  in  their  statements  as  to 
the  aim  of  education.  Formerly  the  farm  furnished  the 
efficiency  and  power,  the  school  the  learning  and  the 
purely  intellectual  development.  Now  the  school  must 
make  every  effort  to  furnish  both.  It  must  inspire  and 
arouse  interest,  must  call  forth  purpose  and  ideal,  but 
must  develop  also  the  strength  and  resolute  perseverance 
to  realize  these.  It  must  furnish  power  and  ingenuity 
lest  the  adult  balk  at  slight  obstacles,  or  be  discouraged 
by  difficulties.  To  many  it  must  try  to  compensate  for 
the  loss  of  the  spur  of  necessity. 

These  latter  qualities  are  hardly  attainable  merely  and 


254  GROWTH  AND  EDUCATION 

solely  through  the  study  of  books.  They  are  exercised 
and  strengthened  far  more  by  the  application  through 
the  muscles  of  what  has  been  acquired  and  assimilated 
by  the  intellect.  Hence  the  value  of  laboratory  work 
and  of  manual  training,  which  is  or  should  be  the  lab- 
oratory of  the  science  of  everyday  life.  The  attainment 
of  efficiency  through  perseverance,  exactness,  and  skill 
is  of  far  more  value  than  any  amount  of  knowledge  of 
rules  of  language  and  mathematics,  or  of  facts  of  science ; 
especially  if  these  are  committed  to  memory  to-day 
against  an  examination  to-morrow,  and  then  immediately 
forgotten  as  foreign  to  any  possible  or  probable  experi- 
ence. 

A  large  proportion  of  our  boys  will  depend  for  their 
livelihood  upon  some  form  of  manual  or  physical  work. 
Can  we  not  show  them  the  possibilities  of  such  work, 
that  it  can  be  made  an  art  or  science  worthy  of  univer- 
sal admiration  and  pursuit  ?  The  interest  of  the  child  in 
handcraft  and  his  respect  and  admiration  for  such  work 
should  at  least  be  preserved  and  not  destroyed. 

I  once  asked  a  football  captain  about  the  condition 
and  prospects  of  his  team.  He  answered :  "  They  know 
the  rules  of  the  game  pretty  well.  What  they  need 
most  is  more  pounds  in  the  rush-line."  I  am  not  cer- 
tain that  our  present  system  of  education  is  yet  giv- 
ing the  best  instruction  in  the  rules  of  the  great  game ; 
but  surely  we  cannot  send  our  pupils  out  into  life  with 
too  many  pounds  in  the  rush-line. 

The  advantages  of  changes  leading  to  so  worthy  ends 
are  well  appreciated  and  fully  understood  by  many  of 
our  teachers  and  by  nearly  all  our  superintendents. 
Our  most  progressive  cities  and  towns  have  already 
made  similar  changes,  and  have  proven  that  they  are 


RETROSPECT  AND   SUMMARY  255 

beneficial.  In  most  localities  the  superintendent  would 
gladly  introduce  manual  and  physical  training,  or  in- 
crease the  time  now  devoted  to  them,  if  the  public 
would  allow  him  to  do  so  and  then  give  him  their  cor- 
dial support  in  his  efforts.  The  responsibility  for  hold- 
ing to  an  inadequate  system  must  lie  finally  with  you 
and  me,  as  long  as  we  block  the  wheels  of  progress. 

It  must  be  confessed  that  the  public  does  not  seem 
to  set  a  very  high  value  on  these  branches  of  education. 
When,  in  a  spasm  of  economy,  we  cut  down  the  appro- 
priations for  our  schools,  the  first  teacher  to  be  dis- 
charged is  not  one  of  the  many  instructors  in  language, 
but  the  one  and  only  teacher  of  gymnastics.  The  next 
department  to  suffer  is  almost  always  that  of  manual 
training.  If  the  tide  of  economy  runs  high,  the  teacher 
of  music  also  is  swept  away.  The  Greeks  considered 
physical  training  and  music  the  most  important  branches 
of  education.  They  certainly  were  intelligent  as  well  as 
intellectual. 

When  the  Committee  of  Ten  framed  their  course  of 
instruction  for  secondary  education,  I  cannot  find  that 
they  held  any  conference  concerning  physical  training, 
nor  do  I  find  it  mentioned  in  their  report.  They  do  not 
seem  to  have  left  much  time  or  place  for  any  one  to 
crowd  it  into  the  grammar  or  high  school.  Yet  that 
committee  was  composed  of  very  wise  and  intelligent 
men.  They  failed  to  seize  an  opportunity  to  forward 
a  most  important  movement,  apparently  on  the  ground 
that  the  subjects  and  disciplines  form  no  natural  and 
essential  part  of  secondary  education.  Many  of  us 
follow  their  august  example. 

Few  of  us  parents  can  spare  much  time  to  consider 
such  subjects.    We  read  the  magazine  articles  on  the 


256  GROWTH  AND  EDUCATION 

latest  discoveries  in  science  or  history.  We  skip  any 
article  on  education  which  the  editor  in  a  careless 
moment  has  chanced  to  accept.  We  throng  the  hall  to 
hear  our  member  of  Congress  speak  on  the  sacredness 
of  the  tariff,  though  the  good  man  finds  it  somewhat 
difficult  to  become  very  eloquent  or  to  touch  our  convic- 
tions, while  he  discusses  the  importance  of  protecting 
coal  and  iron  and  other  infant  industries.  But  should 
the  superintendent  of  our  schools  wish  to  explain  to  us 
his  plans  and  policy  concerning  the  education  of  our 
children,  he  would  have  to  speak  to  empty  benches  in 
most  localities.  The  election  of  a  president  or  governor 
calls  out  every  vote.  The  election  of  a  school-board  re- 
sponsible for  the  education  of  our  children  is  a  quite 
minor  issue. 

Our  schools  are  of  more  importance  than  the  enact- 
ments of  Congress  or  of  our  Legislatures.  A  kind  Pro- 
vidence has  usually  saved  us  from  the  worst  results  of 
legislative  blunders,  and  we  have  no  means  of  knowing 
how  much  good  a  few  statesmen  in  Congress  might  be 
able  to  accomplish.  Yet  our  deplorable  neglect  is  not 
due  to  any  lack  of  interest  in  our  homes  and  children. 

Conservatism  weighs  heavily  with  many.  We  have 
invested  an  immense  amount  of  money,  thought,  and 
labor  in  our  schools.  These  institutions  are  of  great 
size,  having  thousands  of  pupils  in  even  our  smaller 
cities.  We  cannot  change  them  and  risk  our  vested 
interests  to  follow  every  whim  and  fad  of  eager  experi- 
menters and  would-be  reformers.  Our  teachers  have 
been  trained  to  certain  methods  and  policies.  It  is 
neither  wise  nor  fair  to  ask  them  to  change  all  these  for 
any  uncertain  advantage.  We  must  be  cautious  and 
slow  in  our  changes  and  experiments. 


RETROSPECT  AND  SUMMARY  257 

Yet  in  education  as  elsewhere  the  good  is  often  the 
worst  enemy  of  the  best.  "We  should  remember  that 
every  educational  system  is  necessarily  more  or  less  of 
an  experiment ;  and  that  we  must  change,  whether 
we  will  or  not,  to  keep  pace  with  changed  conditions. 
Otherwise  we  shall  surely  fail  to  train  our  children  to 
meet  present  dangers  and  emergencies  and  to  grasp 
present  opportunities.  It  is  unjust  as  well  as  unwise  to 
ask  excellent  teachers  to  work  under  a  system  which  is 
antiquated  and  inadequate  in  important  respects.  But 
the  American  citizen  is  usually  anything  but  over-con- 
servative, when  he  has  once  seen  the  advantage  of  a 
change. 

Those  who  are  most  interested  in  the  cause  of  educa- 
tion are  usually  those  who  prize  learning  most  highly. 
They  watch  with  anxiety  the  growing  interest  in  ath- 
letics in  school  and  college.  They  believe  that  the  phys- 
ical well-being  of  the  child  will  care  for  itself,  but  that 
sound  learning  will  always  need  stanch  and  devoted 
defenders.  The  influence  of  such  men  has  been  the 
greatest  help  and  blessing  in  the  past  and  is  needed  still ; 
but  we  may  well  question  whether  their  zeal  against 
physical  training  or  their  neglect  of  it  is  according  to 
knowledge.  The  lower  grades  of  our  schools  have  not 
been  invaded  by  athletics  to  any  great  extent.  A  little 
more  athletics  would  certainly  help  our  girls  in  these 
grades.  Over-indulgence  in  academy  or  college,  wher- 
ever occurring,  may  be  due  more  to  earlier  denial  of 
a  natural  and  healthy  craving  than  to  any  other  cause. 
Apparently  sound  and  profound  learning  would  be  best 
promoted  to-day  by  attention  to  the  soundness  of  the 
body  during  the  earlier  years  of  life. 

The  deepest  source  of  the  opposition,  neglect,  or  lack 


258  GROWTH  AND  EDUCATION 

of  interest,  seems  to  be  the  failure  of  most  of  us  to  realize 
that  any  system  of  education,  however  good  in  itself, 
can  be  adequate  and  ideal  only  in  so  far  as  it  is  suited 
to  existing  conditions  or  to  our  existing  stage  of  social 
development.  When  old  conditions  pass  away  and  new 
ones  arise,  the  system  of  education  must  change  front 
and  tactics  to  meet  the  new  dangers  and  emergencies. 
If  "  the  old  order  passes,"  "  one  good  custom  may  cor- 
rupt the  world,"  as  Tennyson  tells  us. 

Those  of  us  in  middle  life  see  that  the  schools  of  to- 
day are  generally  furnishing  the  education  which  would 
have  been  adequate  to  all  our  needs  twoscore  years 
ago.  We  wish  to  have  our  children  have  all  the  oppor- 
tunities and  training  whose  lack  or  imperfection  we  felt 
most  deeply  and  remember  most  clearly.  We  forget 
that  most  of  us  were  reared  under  conditions  quite  dif- 
ferent from  those  now  existing  ;  and  that  our  children's 
needs  may  not  be  the  same  as  ours  were.  We  easily 
forget  how  fully  the  school  has  carried  out  all  these 
changes  and  reforms  needed  in  our  childhood;  that  the 
changes  in  the  direction  desired  by  us  have  already 
gone  far  beyond  our  former  hopes,  perhaps  beyond 
what  in  moments  of  careful  consideration  we  would 
approve. 

While  we  clearly  remember  the  deficiencies  of  the 
schools  of  our  childhood,  we  are  in  danger  of  forgetting 
the  advantages  of  our  early  home  training.  Many  re- 
member only  the  hardships  and  deprivations  of  their 
early  life,  and  in  their  unwise  fondness  would  not  have 
their  children  share  the  training  to  which  they  owe  their 
strength  and  success. 

What  may  be  urged  fairly  and  wisely  is  a  careful, 
thoughtful,  patient  consideration  of  the  claims  of  the 


RETROSPECT  AND   SUMMARY  259 

various  forms  of  physical  education  ;  and  that  this  con- 
sideration should  be  undertaken  in  the  light  of  present 
social  conditions  and  needs,  and  with  an  adequate 
knowledge  of  the  present  condition,  work,  and  needs  of 
our  schools.  The  most  progress  has  been  made,  and 
the  best  schools  are  found,  where  the  public  has  been 
brought  into  the  closest  relation  with  the  superintend- 
ent and  the  teachers.  Every  town  and  city  needs  an 
educational  club  to  learn,  appreciate,  and  support  the 
policy  and  plans  of  the  board  and  superintendent,  as 
far  as  these  are  reasonable.  The  least  that  we  can  do 
is  now  and  then  to  invite  them  to  explain  to  us  their 
aims  and  wishes,  and  to  turn  our  most  careful  attention 
and  thought  to  their  recommendations.  Unless  we  are 
willing  to  do  this  much,  the  best  and  most  energetic 
superintendent  can  accomplish  but  little.  Only  as  the 
public  becomes  sufficiently  educated  to  appreciate  the 
difficulty  and  complexity  of  the  present  educational 
problem,  can  it  expect  to  vote  or  legislate  wisely  and 
thus  secure  the  best  returns  on  the  investment. 

It  is  becoming  more  and  more  difficult  to  draw  any 
sharp  line  between  the  responsibility  of  the  home  and 
that  of  the  school.  The  partnership  of  the  two  has  be- 
come exceedingly  close.  Their  interests  are  of  course 
identical,  and  each  shares  in  the  work  of  the  other. 
Their  areas  of  duty  overlap.  The  lower  grades  of  the 
school  are  an  extension  of  the  home,  and  the  home 
should  aid  in  the  work  of  the  higher  grades.  As  the 
inter-dependence  of  the  two  increases,  the  largest  possi- 
ble acquaintance  between  parents  and  teachers  becomes 
absolutely  essential.  The  teacher  who  knows  us  well 
will  have  far  more  charity  for  as  well  as  knowledge  of 
our  children.    When  we  appreciate  the  work  and  fidel- 


260  GROWTH  AND  EDUCATION 

ity  and  difficulties  of  the  teacher,  we  shall  see  more 
clearly  how  we  can  actively  help  and  what  hindrances 
we  can  remove.  This  better  mutual  understanding  will 
pave  the  way  for  many  improvements  at  home  and  at 
school.  Both  parties  will  be  greatly  benefited  by  the 
cooperation  and  sympathy. 


APPENDIX 


APPENDIX 


A.   TABLES 

Table  I  gives  the  dimensions  and  proportions  of  the  body  and 
the  principal  internal  organs  at  birth,  at  the  end  of  each  of  the 
first  five  triennia,  and  in  the  adult.  The  first  column,  A,  gives 
the  absolute  measure  in  kilograms  or  centimeters  ;  the  second,  B, 
the  percentile  increase  during  the  preceding  three  years  ;  the 
third,  C,  the  per  cent  of  the  adult  measure  attained  at  each  age. 

The  American  heights  and  weights  are  taken  from  Holt  (138, 
p.  20),  Boas  (116,  pp.  262,  263),  and  Hitchcock  (96).  The  Eng- 
lish heights  and  weights  are  from  Roberts  (134).  The  sitting- 
heights,  and  standing-heights  as  compared  with  the  sitting  are 
from  Porter  (118).  The  girths  are  taken  from  Quetelet  (135), 
except  those  for  boys  older  than  six,  which  are  from  Hall  (125). 
The  strength  of  squeeze  is  copied  from  Hastings  (124)  ;  the  lift- 
ing-power from  Weissenberg's  "  Sudrussische  Juden."  Weights 
of  brain,  liver,  kidneys,  and  heart  are  from  Vierordt  (139, 
pp.  21-24). 

Table  I. 


WEIGHT. 

HEIGHT. 

Amebican. 

English. 

American. 

Age. 

A. 

B. 

C. 

A. 

B. 

C. 

A. 

B. 

C. 

Abs. 

%inc. 

%  of  ad. 

Abs. 

%inc. 

%ad. 

A.bs. 

%inc. 

%ad. 

0 
3 
6 
9 
12 
15 
Ad. 

3.4 
14.2 
20.5 
27.0 
34.9 
48.7 
64.1 

317.6 
44.4 
31.7 
29.3 
39.5 
30.9 

5.3 
22.2 
32.7 
42.1 
54.4 
76.0 
100.0 

3.2 
15.4 
20.1 
27.4 
34.8 
46.8 
66.7 

381.3 
30.5 
36.3 
27.0 
34.5 
42.5 

4.8 
23.1 
30.1 
41.1 
52.2 
70.2 
100.0 

52.5 
89.1 
112.0 
127.0 
140.7 
159.8 
173.2 

69.7 
25.7 
13.4 
10.8 
13.6 
8.4 

30.3 
51.4 
64.7 
73.3 
81.2 
92.3 
100.0 

264 


APPENDIX 


Height  —  English. 

KlLOG.    PEB 

Sitting-Height. 

A. 

B. 

C. 

Meter 

A. 

B. 

C. 

Age. 

Weight. 

Abs. 

%inc. 

%ad. 

Abs. 

%  inc. 

%ad. 

0 

49.5 

28.8 

6.5 

3 

935 

88.9 

54.4 

15.9 

6 

111.8 

19.6 

65.1 

18.4 

61.3 

67.4 

9 

126.2 

12.9 

73.5 

21.3 

'•66.7 

8.8 

73.4 

12 

139.7 

10.7 

81.3 

24.8 

72.6 

8.8 

79.9 

15 

158.0 

13.8 

92.0 

30.5 

79.7 

9.8 

87.7 

Ad. 

171.8 

8.7 

100.0 

37.0 

90.9 

14.1 

100.0 

Hep  to  Cbown. 

Hip  to  Sole. 

Armpit  to 

Hip. 

Age. 

A. 

B. 

C. 

A. 

B. 

C. 

A. 

B. 

C. 

Abs. 

%inc. 

%ad. 

Abs. 

%  inc. 

%ad. 

Abs. 

%  inc. 

%ad. 

0 

24.2 

36.6 

24.3 

22.7 

8.3 

32.9 

3 

42.7 

76.4 

64.5 

52.3 

115.2 

48.9 

15.1 

81.9 

59.9 

6 

48.6 

13.8 

73.4 

66.2 

26.6 

61.9 

16.8 

11.3 

66.7 

9 

50.1 

3.1 

75.7 

75.7 

14.4 

70.8 

17.3 

3.0 

68.7 

12 

53.8 

7.4 

81.3 

]83.0 

9.6 

77.6 

18.6 

7.5 

73.8 

15 

57.9 

7.6 

87.5 

96.9 

16.7 

90.6 

20.7 

11.3 

82.1 

Ad. 

66.2 

14.3 

100.0 

106.9 

10.3 

100.0 

25.2 

21.7 

100.0 

Stand 

-Ht.  —  Sit.-Ht. 

Ht.  sitting. 

Chest-Gibth. 

Age. 

A. 

B. 

C. 

A. 

B. 

C. 

Chest  girth. 

Ht.  stand. 

Stand. -ht. 

Abs. 

%inc. 

%ad. 

Abs. 

%inc. 

%ad. 

0 

34.2 

36.8 

65.1 

3 

51.1 

49.4 

55.0 

57.4 

6 

47.6 

58.8 

56.3 

59.1 

15.7 

63.6 

52.8 

9 

57.7 

21.2 

71.3 

53.7 

63.9 

8.1 

68.8 

50.2 

12 

65.6 

13.7 

81.1 

52.5 

68.8 

7.7 

74.1 

49.8 

15 

75.2 

14.6 

93.0 

51.5 

76.6 

11.3 

82.5 

49.4 

Ad. 

80.9 

7.6 

100.0 

52.5 

92.9 

21.3 

100.0 

53.6 

APPENDIX 

GIRTHS. 


Thigh. 

Upper  Arm. 

FOREARM 

. 

Age. 

A. 

B. 

C. 

A. 

B. 

C. 

A. 

B. 

C. 

Abs. 

%inc. 

%ad. 

Abs. 

%inc. 

%ad. 

Abs. 

%inc. 

%ad. 

0 

3 

6 

9 

12 

15 

Ad. 

13.8 
26.5 
29.8 
37.1 
41.0 
46.1 
52.5 

92.9 
12.5 

10.5 
12.4 
13.9 

26.3 
50.5 
56.8 
70.7 
78.1 
87.8 
100.0 

9.1 
13.5 
14.5 
18.7 
21.3 
25.5 
30.7 

45.1 
7.4 

13.9 
19.7 
20.4 

29.6 
44.0 
47.2 
60.9 
69.4 
83.1 
100.0 

7.5 
10.1 
10.7 
17.6 
20.1 
23.7 
26.7 

34.7 
5.9 

14.2 
17.9 
12.7 

28.1 
37.8 
40.1 
65.9 
75.3 
88.8 
100.0 

Squeeze. 

Lift. 

Lift 
Weight. 

Squeeze 

Weight. 

A. 

B. 

C. 

A. 

B. 

C. 

Age. 

Abs. 

%inc. 

%ad. 

Abs. 

%  inc. 

%ad. 

% 

% 

0 
3 
6 

7.0 

14.5 

134.8 

36.1 

9 

13.1 

87.1 

27.2 

174.5 

52.2 

12 

19.7 

50.4 

40.9 

54.2 

36.0 

176.0 

59.7 

15 

28.9 

46.7 

60.0 

90.6 

36.4 

60.2 

221.0 

61.5 

Ad. 

48.21 

66.8 

100.0 

150.6 

59.4 

100.0 

264.8 

67.7 

WEIGHT   OF  ORGANS. 


Brain. 

Liver. 

Kidneys. 

A. 

B. 

C. 

A. 

B. 

C. 

A. 

B. 

C. 

Age. 

Abs. 

%inc. 

%ad. 

Abs. 

%inc. 

%ad. 

Abs. 

%inc. 

%ad. 

0 

381.0 

25.6 

141.7 

7.8 

23.3 

7.6 

3 

1108.1 

190.8 

74.4 

484.7 

242.1 

26.6 

102.1 

338.2 

33.4 

6 

1359.1 

22.7 

91.2 

614.8 

27.5 

33.8 

106.8 

4.6 

34.9 

9 

1425.0 

4.8 

95.6 

701.7 

14.1 

38.6 

156.0 

46.1 

51.0 

12 

1415.6 

95.0 

880.0 

11.2 

48.4 

(157.5)2 

(1.0) 

51.5 

15 

1490.2 

100.0 

1306.0 

48.4 

71.8 

239.7 

52.2 

78.4 

Ad. 

(1490.2) 

100.0 

1819.0 

39.3 

100.0 

305.9 

27.6 

100.0 

Hastings. 


2  Av.  of  11  and  13. 


i>G6 


APPENDIX 


Heabt. 

Lung  Capacity. 

A. 

B. 

C. 

A. 

B. 

C. 

Age. 

CO,  PER  HOUB 

AND   KlLOG. 

Aba. 

%inc. 

%ad. 

Abs. 

%inc. 

%ad. 

%  weight. 

Rel. 

0 

23.6 

7.9 

3 

64.8 

174.6 

21.6 

6 

84.9 

31.0 

28.2 

.83 

19.1 

4.28 

9 

108.3 

27.6 

36.0 

1.33 

60.2 

30.6 

5.30 

210. 

12 

(152.5) 

(40.8) 
(30.8) 

(50.7) 

1.83 

37.6 

42.2 

5.55 

186. 

15 

199.4 

66.3 

2.64 

44.3 

60.8 

5.62 

165. 

Ad. 

300.6 

50.8 

100.0 

4.34 

64.4 

100.0 

6.96 

130.  * 

1  100  =  amount  at  57. 


WEIGHT. 
FEMALES. 


American. 

English. 

American  —  Height. 

A. 

B. 

C. 

A. 

B. 

C. 

A. 

B. 

C. 

Age. 

Abs. 

%inc 

%ad. 

Abs. 

%inc. 

%ad. 

Abs. 

%inc. 

%ad. 

0 

3.3 

6.1 

3.1 

5.6 

52.2 

32.5 

3 

13.6 

312.1 

25.3 

14.3 

361.3 

25.9 

891 

70.7 

55.4 

6 

19.7 

44.9 

36.7 

18.9 

32.2 

34.2 

110.0 

23.5 

68.5 

9 

26.0 

32.0 

48.4 

25.1 

32.8 

45.5 

126.2 

14.7 

78.5 

12 

35.7 

37.3 

66.5 

34.7 

38.2 

62.9 

142.5 

12.9 

88.7 

16 

48.4 

35.6 

90.1 

48.2 

38.9 

87.3 

156.5 

9.8 

97.4 

Ad. 

53.7 

11.0 

100.0 

55.2 

14.5 

100.0 

160.7 

2.7 

100.0 

HEIGHTS. 


English. 

Weight 

Sitting-Height. 

A. 

B. 

C. 

A. 

B. 

C. 

Age. 

Abs. 

%inc. 

%  ad. 

% 

Abs. 

%inc. 

%ad. 

0 

49.0 

30.6 

6.3 

3 

92  0 

87.8 

57.5 

15.3 

. 

6 

109.0 

18.5 

68.1 

17.9 

59.5 

69.9 

9 

123.7 

13.5 

77.3 

20.6 

66.2 

113 

77.8 

12 

141.5 

14.4 

88.4 

251 

72.7 

9.8 

85.4 

15 

154.7 

9.3 

96.6 

30.9 

81.4 

12.0 

95.7 

Ad. 

160.1 

3.5 

100.0 

33.4 

85.1 

4.5 

100.0 

APPENDIX 


267 


Stand. 

■Ht.  —  Sit.-Ht. 

Chebt  Girth. 

Sit.  Ht. 
St.'Ht. 

A. 

B 

C. 

A. 

B. 

C. 

Chest — 

Age. 

Girth  on 

— 

Adb. 

%inc. 

%ad. 

% 

Abs. 

%inc. 

%a<L 

Stand.  H. 

0 

33.2 

41.3 

63.6 

3 

50.5 

52.1 

62.8 

56.7 

6 

48.2 

65.1 

55.2 

58.3 

15.4 

72.5 

54.2 

9 

57.5 

19.3 

77.5 

53.5 

62.5 

7.2 

77.7 

50.6 

12 

66.4 

15.5 

89.5 

52.2 

68.3 

9.3 

85.0 

49.1 

15 

73.6 

10.8 

99.2 

52.5 

76.8 

12.4 

95.5 

50.1 

Ad. 

74.2 

0.8 

100.0 

53.4 

80.4 

4.7 

100.0 

50.6 

GIRTHS. 


Thigh  Uppeb. 

Thigh  Loweb. 

Calf. 

Uppeb  Abm. 

A. 

B. 

C. 

A. 

B. 

C 

A. 

B. 

C. 

A. 

i 

B. 

6 

a 

C. 

< 

i 

J 

i 

JS 

a 

.3 

i 

2 

1 

i 

03 

< 

£ 

s 

< 

£ 

^ 

< 

S 

& 

< 

£ 

$£ 

0 

13-7 

27.4 

11.6 

31.3 

9.7 

29.2 

9.0 

34.2 

3 

26.2 

91.2 

52.4 

21  6 

86.2 

58.2 

17.9 

84.5 

53.9 

13.4 

48.9 

51.0 

6 

29.3 

11.8 

58.6 

23.6 

9.3 

63.6 

20.4 

14.0 

61.4 

14.3 

6.7 

54.4 

9 

32.4 

10.6 

64.8 

25.7 

8.9 

69.3 

22.6 

10.8 

68.1 

15.6 

9.1 

5'J.3 

12 

36.4 

12.3 

72.8 

28.2 

9.7 

76.0 

24.7 

9.3 

74.4 

17.0 

9.0 

64.6 

15 

42.1 

15.7 

84.2 

31.8 

12.8 

85.7 

27.8 

12  6 

83.7 

19.3 

13.5 

73.4 

Ad. 

50.0 

18.8 

100.0 

37.1 

16.7 

100.0 

33.2 

19.4 

100.0 

26.3 

36.3 

100.0 

GIRTHS. 

WEIGHTS. 

FOBEABM. 

Right  Hand  Squeeze. 

Brain. 

Age. 

A. 

B. 

C. 

.A 

B. 

C. 

A. 

B. 

C. 

Abs. 

%inc. 

%ad. 

Abs. 

%inc. 

££ad. 

Abs. 

%inc. 

%ad. 

0 

7.4 

50.3 

384.2 

28.6 

•      3 

10.0 

35.1 

68.0 

1040.2 

170.7 

77.3 

6 

10.4 

4.0 

70.7 

5.2 

17.3 

1264.5 

21.6 

94.0 

9 

11.3 

8.7 

76.9 

10.1 

94.2 

33.6 

1242.6 

12 

12.2 

8.0 

83.0 

16.0 

58.4 

53.2 

1245.2 

15 

13.5 

10.7 

91.8 

24.4 

52.5 

81.1 

1238.1 

Ad. 

14.7 

8.9 

100.0 

30.1 

23.4 

100.0 

1345.0 

100.0 

268 


APPENDIX 

WEIGHTS. 


LlVEB. 

Kidneys. 

Heart. 

Age. 

A. 

B. 

C. 

A. 

B. 

C. 

A. 

B. 

C. 

Abs. 

%inc. 

%ad. 

Abs. 

%inc. 

%ad. 

Abs. 

%inc. 

%ad. 

0 

164.0 

10.7 

23.1 

8.6 

24.0 

9.5 

3 

445.0 

171.3 

29.0 

99.3 

329.9 

36.9 

59.7 

148.8 

23.7 

6 

642.0 

44.3 

41.9 

129.3 

30.2 

48.0 

89.2 

49.4 

35.3 

9 

795.0 

23.8 

51.9 

133.3 

3.1 

49.5 

123.3 

38.2 

48.9 

12 

807.9 

16.2 

52.7 

(204.8) 

76.1 

(110.0) 

15 

1420.0 

75.8 

92.7 

235.0 

87.3 

250.1 

99.1 

Ad. 

1532.3 

7.9 

100.0 

269.2 

14.6 

100  0 

252.4 

0.9 

100.0 

Vital  Capacity 

A. 

B. 

C. 

co2  per  Hour 

AMD  KlLOG. 

Age. 

Abs. 

%  inc. 

%ad. 

%  Weight. 

0 

3 

6 

.71 

28.0 

3.83 

9 

1.14 

60.6 

44.9 

4.58 

0.850 

12 

1.54 

35.1 

60.6 

4.65 

0.743 

15 

2.02 

31.2 

79.5 

4.33 

0.562 

Ad. 

2.54 

25.7 

100.0 

4.90 

0.540 

APPENDIX 


269 


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«  in  c  t-  ? i  «  u-  x  c  x  co  civt-c-r.^oBS 
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iHrHwINMjjJIINr-FHi-i 

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3.90 

8.50 

27.01 

40.31 

46.39 

60.80 

69.52 

103.86 

123.20 

195.49 

191.20 

300.03 

232.04 

162.03 

171.39 

169.66 

152.08 

L26.88 

158.12 

95.35 

137.73 

© 

a 

3.59 

8.33 

26.60 

38.97 

47.30 

63.89 

71.95 

105.36 

140.58 

159.68 

199.11 

265.72 

257.91 

192.55 

203.90 

172.10 

152.00 

138.33 

105  61 

96.36 

114.55 

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119.96 

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25.66 

21.14 

15.65 
13.89 
9.49 
7.11 
6.26 
5.00 
3.76 
3.87 
5.19 
4.90 
5.61 
6.57 
7.22 
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270 


APPENDIX 

MORBIDITY. 


Boys. 

Girls. 

Copenhagen. 

Stockholm. 

Age  at  last 
birthday. 

Denmark. 

Sweden. 

Age. 

% 

Age. 

% 

% 

% 

6.6 

18.41 

6 

23.0 

7.5 

18.41 

7.8 

17.6 

7 

27.0 

28.6 

8.5 

34.0 

8.9 

36.7 

8 

28.0 

50.0 

9.6 

30.7 

10.0 

33.8 

9 

39.0 

47.6 

10.5 

33.6 

10 

40.0 

55.7 

11.7 

33.5 

11.3 

34.4 

11 

39.0 

59.7 

12.5 

32.8 

12.3 

37.6 

12 

42.0 

64.8 

13.5 

41.9 

13.4 

38.0 

13 

50.0 

64.4 

14.3 

31.8 

14.3 

37.4 

14 

48.0 

63.1 

15.6 

28.3 

15.4 

36.6 

15 

40.0 

63.9 

16.7 

38.2 

16.5 

34.7 

16 

40.0 

62.5 

17.5 

26.4 

17.4 

38.6 

17 

(20.0) 

68.5 

18.3 

40.5 

18 

60.3 

19.4 

36.9 

60.0 

1  Average  of  both  years. 

These  tables  are  a  brief  summary  given  by  Key,  136  pp.,  81  and  313.  The  discus- 
sion in  Chapter  IX  is  based  on  a  larger  table,  and  its  figures  differ  somewhat  from 
this.  The  girls'  schools  are  the  private  schools  of  Denmark  and  the  higher  schools 
of  Sweden. 

Key's  book  is  a  most  careful  study,  and  should  be  thoroughly  examined. 


B.   BIBLIOGRAPHY 

The  most  important  abbreviations  used  in  this  bibliography  are  :  A.  A.  A.  P.  E., 
Report  of  American  Association  for  Advancement  of  Physical  Education  ;  Ed.,  Edu- 
cation ;  Ed.  Rev.,  Educational  Review;  N.  E.  A.,  Report  of  National  Educational 
Association;  Ped.  Sem.,  Pedagogical  Seminary  ;  Pop.  Sci.  Mo.,  Popular  Science 
Monthly;  Zts.  f.  Sch.  ges.  pn.,  Zeitschrift  fur  Schulgesundheitspilege. 


CHAPTER  I 

PRESENT   NEEDS   IN   EDUCATION 

1.  Walker,   F.,  Restriction  of  Immigration,   Atlantic,    lxxvii, 

1896. 

2.  Earle,  A.  M.,  Child-Life  in  Colonial  Days.    New  York. 

3.  Earle,  A.  M.,  Home-Life  in  Colonial  Days.    New  York. 

4.  Hamlin,  Cyrus,  My  Life  and  Times.    Boston,  1893. 

5.  Hall,  G.  S.,  Boy-Life  in  a  Country  Town  a  Quarter  of  a  Cen- 

tury Ago.    Proc.  Amer.  Ant.  Soc,  Worcester,  October, 
1890;  Abstract  in  Ped.  Sem.,  i,  232. 

6.  Hall,  G.  S.,  Moral  Education  and  Will  Training,    Ped.  Sem., 

ii,  73. 

7.  Winslow,  H.  M.,  Child-Life  on  a  New  England  Farm.    Ed., 

ix,  466. 

8.  Bailey,  L.  H.,  The  Outlook  to  Nature.    New  York,  1905. 

9.  Loomis,  S.  L.,  Modern  Cities.    New  York,  1887. 

10.  Wilcox,  D.  F.,  The  American  City.    New  York,  1904. 

11.  Strong,  Josiah,  The  Twentieth  Century  City.    New  York, 

1898. 

12.  Weber,  A.  F.,  The  Growth  of  Cities.   New  York,  1899. 

13.  Wright,  C.  D.,  Lessons  from  the  Census.    Pop.  Sci.  Mo.,  xlvi, 

459. 

14.  Fothergill,  J.  M.,  The  Town-Dweller.   New  York,  1895. 

15.  Ammon,  O.,  Die  naturliche   Auslese  bei  Menschen.    Jena, 

1893. 

16.  Eliot,    C.  W.,  Family  Stocks  in  a  Democracy.    Forum,    x, 

396. 

17.  Handbook  of  Prevention  of  Tuberculosis.    New  York,  1903. 

18.  Hunter,  R.,  Poverty.    New  York,  1905. 


272  APPENDIX 

19.  First  Report  of  Tenement  House  Department  of  City  of 

New  York. 

20.  Baxter,  J.  H.,   Medical    Statistics  of  the  Provost-Marshal- 

General's  Bureau.    Washington,  1875. 

21.  Beard,  American  Nervousness.    New  York,  1881. 

22.  Hall,  G.  S.,  Moral  and  Religious  Training  of  Children  and 

Adolescents.    Ped.  Sem.,  i,  196. 

23.  Pickard,  J.  L.,  Checks  to  Criminal  Tendency  Needed.   Ed., 

xvii,  389. 

24.  Street,  J.  R.,  A  Study  in  Moral  Education.    Ped.  Sem.  v,  1. 

25.  Bushnell,  H.,  The  Age  of  Homespun.   See  374,  p.  368. 


CHAPTER  II 

MAN  IN   THE   LIGHT    OF  EVOLUTION 

General 

35.  Haeckel,  E.,  History  of  Creation.    London,  1876. 

36.  Haeckel,    E.,     Systematische    Phylogenie.     Berlin,  1895. 

Three  volumes. 

37.  Darwin,  C,  Origin  of  Species. 

38.  Darwin,  C,  Descent  of  Man. 

39.  Cope,  E.  D.,  Primary  Factors  of  Organic  Evolution.    Chi- 

cago, 1896. 

39.  Tyler,  J.  M.,  The  Whence  and  The  Whither  of  Man.    New 

'  York,  1896. 

40.  Marshall,  C.  F.,  Lectures  on  the  Darwinian  Theory.    Lon- 

don.  1894. 

Human  Evolution 
Darwin,  C,  Descent  of  Man.    Various  editions. 
42.  Drummond,  H.,  Ascent  of  Man.    New  York,  1894. 
47.  Fiske,  J.,  The  Destiny  of  Man.   Boston,  1884. 

Human  Nervous  System 

55.  Halleck,  R.  P.,  Education  of  the  Central  Nervous  System. 

New  York,  1898.   Chap.  i. 

56.  James,  W.,  Psychology,  Briefer  Course.    New  York,  1893. 

Chaps,  vii-x,  pp.  478. 

57.  Mercier,  C,  The  Nervous  System  and  the  Mind.    New  York, 

1888,  pp.  374. 


APPENDIX  273 

58.  Todd,  R.  B.,  Cyclopedia  of  Anatomy  and  Physiology.    Lon- 

don, 1847,  viii,  p.  661. 

59.  Edinger,  L.,    Bau   der   nervosen    Centralorgane.     5th  ed. 

Leipzig,  1896,  pp.  386. 

60.  Ross,  J.,  Diseases   of   the  Nervous   System.   Philadelphia, 

1886. 

61.  Barker,  L.  F.,  The  Nervous  System.    New  York,  1899. 

62.  Flechsig,  P.  Gehirn  und  Seele.    Leipzig,  1896. 

65.  New  International  Encyclopedia.  New  York,  Art.  Ner- 
vous System.  See  also  any  other  modern  encyclopedia, 
articles,  Nervous  System;  Brain. 

Comparative  Anatomy 

70.  Gegenbaur,  C,    Elements  of  Comparative  Anatomy.    Lon- 

don, 1878.   2d  ed.,  p.  503. 

71.  Wiedersheim,  R.,  Comparative    Anatomy    of  Vertebrates. 

New  York,  1886.   p.  131. 

72.  Wiedersheim,  R.,  Structure  of  Man.    London  and  New  York, 

1895.    See  also  No.  58,  iii,  p.  618. 

Fundamental  and  Accessory 

73.  Hartwell,  E.  M.,  Physical  Training.    Rep.  Com.  of  Ed.  U.  S., 

1903.   i,  724. 

74.  Burk,  F.,  From  Fundamental  to  Accessory  in  Development 

of  Nervous  System.    Ped.  Sem.  vi,  1.    Also  in  Rep.  of  Com. 
of  Ed.  U.  S.  1901-02,  i,  345. 

CHAPTER  III 

HINTS  FROM  EMBRYOLOGY 

75.  Romanes,  J.  G.,  Darwin  and  After  Darwin.  Chicago,  1896, 

i,  134. 

76.  Marshall,  A.  M.,  Vertebrate  Embryology.  New  York,  1893, 

p.  219. 

77.  Foster,  M.,  and  Balfour,  F.  M.,  Elements  of  Embryology.  Lon- 

don, 1898.  Two  vols. 
See  also  65,  Art.  Embryology. 

Recapitulation  Theory . 

80.  Morgan,  T.  H.,  Evolution  and  Adaptation.   New  York,  1903, 
Chap.  iii. 


274  APPENDIX 

81.  Baldwin,  J.  M.,  Mental  Development.   New   York,   1897. 

82.  Guillet,  C,  Recapitulation  and  Education.    Ped.   Sem.  vii, 

397. 

83.  Sedgwick,  A.,  Law  of  Development   known  as  von   Baer's 

Law.    Quart.   Journ.  of  Mic.  Science,  xxxvi,  35. 
See  also ,  35 ,  36 ,  38,  175  and  192  ;  65,  Art.  Biogenesis. 
Johnson's  Encyclopedia.    Art.  Evolution. 


CHAPTER  IV 

GROWTH   IN    WEIGHT    AND    HEIGHT 

91.  Hitchcock,  E.,  and  Seelye,  H.  H.,  Anthropometric  Manual. 

2d.  ed.  Amherst,  Mass.,  1889. 

92.  Hitchcock,  E.,  Synoptic  Exhibit  of  15000  Examinations.  Proc. 

Fifth  Ann.  Meeting.  Am.  Assoc,  for  Adv.  of  Phys.  Ed. 
1890. 

93.  Hitchcock,  E.,  Comparative  Study  of  Measurements  of  Male 

and  Female  Students  at  Amherst,  Mt.  Holyoke,  and 
Wellesley.  Proc.  Am.  Assoc,  for  Adv.  of  Phys.,  Ed.  1891, 
vi,  37. 

94.  Hitchcock,  E.,  Results  of  Anthropometry.    Amherst,    1892. 

95.  Hitchcock,  E.,  and  Seelye,  H.  H.,  Physical  Measurements  of 

Young  Men.   Boston,   1893. 

96.  Hitchcock,  E.,  Comparative  Anthropometry  of  Males  and  Fe- 

males.   Amherst,  1903. 

97.  Hitchcock,  E.,  and  Phillips,  P.  G.,  Physical  Growth  of  Stu- 

dents during  Course  at  Amherst  College.    Amherst. 

98.  Phillips,  P.  C,  Anthropometric  Study  of  Students  of  Amherst 

College.    Amherst,  1903. 

99.  Phillips,  P.  C,  Is  the  Physique  of  the  American  College  Man 

and  Woman  Degenerating  ?    Am.  Phys.  Ed.  Rev.  ix. 

100.  Beyer,  H.  G.,  Growth  of  U.  S.  Naval    Cadets.    Proc.  U.  S. 

Naval  Inst.  xxi. 

101.  Foster,  A.  B.,  Occupation  and  Exercise.    Rep.  of   9th.  Ann. 

Meet,  of  Am.  Assoc.  Phys.    Ed. 

102.  Barr,  A.  L.,  Some  Anthropometric  Data  of  Western  College 

Girls.  Am.  Phys.  Ed.  Rev.  viii,  245. 

103.  Richards,  A.,  and  Little,  B.  B.,  Proposed  Standard  Chart  to 

show  Proportions  of  Amer.  Females.  Report  of  10th  Ann. 
Meeting  Am.  Assoc,  for  Adv.  Phys.  Ed.  p.  30. 


APPENDIX  275 

115.  Hall,  G.  S.,  Adolescence.   New  York,  1904.    Chapter  i. 

116.  Burk,  F.,  Growth  of  Children  in  Height  and  Weight.    Am. 

Jour.  Psy.  ix,  253.    Bib. 

117.  Bowditch,  H.  P.,  Growth  of  Children.    8th  Ann.  Rep.  Mass. 

State  Board  of  Health,  1875. 

118.  Porter,  W.  F.,  Growth  of  St.  Louis  Children.    Trans.  Acad. 

Sci.  St.  Louis,  vi,  263.     g 

119.  Peckham,  G.  W.,  Growth  of  Children.   6th  Ann.  Rep.  State 

Board  of  Health,  Wisconsin,  1881. 

120.  Papers  on  Anthropometry.    Amer.  Statist.  Assoc.  Boston, 

1894. 

121.  Boas,  F.  W.,  Growth  of  Toronto  Children.    Rep.  U.  S.  Com. 

Ed.  1896-7,  p.  1541. 

122.  Christopher,  W.  S.,  Measurements  of  Chicago  School  Chil- 

dren.   Chicago,  1900. 

123.  Smedley,  F.  W.,  Report  of  Committee  on  Child-Study.   46th 

Ann.  Rep.  of  Board  of  Ed.    Chicago,  1899-1900.    (Child- 
Study  Rep.  2.) 

124.  Hastings,   W.   W.,     Manual   for   Physical   Measurements. 

Springfield,  Mass.,  1902. 

125.  Hall,  W.  S.,  Changes  in  Proportions  of  Human  Body.    Jour. 

Anthr.  Inst.  Great  Britain  and  Ireland,  1895,  xxv,  21-46. 

126.  MacDonald,    A.,    Experimental    Study    of    Children.     Rep. 

U.  S.  Com.  Ed.  97-98.    Chapters  xxi-xxv.    Bib. 

127.  Gilbert,  J.  A.,  Researches  on  Mental  and  Physical  Devel. 

of  School  Children.    Studies  from  Yale  Psych.  Lab.  ii,  40. 

128.  Gilbert,  J.  A.,  Researches  upon  School  Children  and  College 

Students.    Univ.  Iowa.    Studies  in  Psych,  i,  1,  Iowa  City, 
1897. 

129.  Moon,  S.  B.,  Measurements  of  Boys  of  McDonough  School. 

McD.  School  Md.,  1892. 

130.  Moon,  S.  B.,  Growth  of  Boys.   Rep.    10th   Ann.    Meeting 

Amer.  Assoc.  Adv.  of  Phys.  Ed. 

131.  West,  G.  M.,  Anthropometrische  Untersuchungen  uber  die 

Schulkinder  in  Worcester,  Mass.    Archiv  fiir  Anthrop. 
xxii,  13. 

132.  Vines,  J.  H.,  Physique  of  the  Public  School  Boy.  (England.) 

Amer.  Phys.    Ed.  Rev.  ix,  110. 

133.  MacLaren,  Physical  Training.    Oxford,  1869. 

134.  Roberts,  C.  F.,  Manual  of  Anthropometry.    London,  1878. 

135.  Quetelet,  A.,  Anthropometric   Brussels,  1870. 


276  APPENDIX 

136.  Key,   A.,     Schulhygienische     Untersuchungen.     Hamburg, 

1889.   pp.  346. 

137.  Hertel,   A.,    Overpressure    in  High   Schools    of    Denmark, 

London,  1885. 

138.  Holt,  L.  E.,  Diseases  of  Infancy,  New  York. 

139.  Vierordt,  H.,  Daten  und  Tabellen.   Jena,  1893. 

140.  Malling-Hansen,  H.,  Perioden  im  Gewicht  der  Kinder  und 

in  der  Sonnen  Warme.    Copenhagen,  1881. 

141.  Schmid-Monnard,  K.,  Einfluss  der  Jahreszeit  und  der  Schule 

auf  das  Wachsthum  der  Kinder.    Zeits.  f.  Sch.  ges.  pfl., 
1894,  vii,  626;  1896,  ix,  317. 


CHAPTER  V 

THE   NEURO-MUSCULAR    SYSTEM 

145.  Muhlmann,  M.,  Ursache  des  Alters.    Wiesbaden,  1900. 

146.  Bryan,  W.  L.,    Development  of  Motor  Ability.    Am.  Jour. 

Psy.  v,  125. 

147.  Carman,  A.,  Measurements  of  Brain,  etc.    Am.  Jour.  Psy., 

1889.   See  also  127,  128.   115.   i,  chap.  iii. 

150.  Donaldson,  H.  H.,  Growth  of  the  Brain.    New  York,  1898. 

151.  Donaldson,  H.  H.,  Growth  of  Brain  in  Relation  to  Training. 

Trans.  111.    Soc.  Child-Study,  1894,  i,  59. 

152.  Flechsig,  P.,  Gerhiu  und  Seele.    Leipzig,  1896. 

153.  Flechsig,  P.,  Localization  der  geistigen  Vorgange.    Leipzig, 

1896. 

154.  Flechsig,  P.,  Le  Cerveau  et  L'Ame.    (152,  with  additions.) 

155.  Burk,  F.,  From  Fundamental  to  Accessory  in  the  Develop- 

ment of  the  Nervous  System.    Ped.  Sem.  1899,  vi,  1. 

156.  Boyd,  R.,  Tables  of  Weights,  etc.   Philosophical  Transac- 

tions, 1861,  cli,  242. 

157.  Clouston,  T.  S.,  Neuroses  of  Development.    Edinburgh  and 

London.   1891.   See   also  115,  p.  105  and  chap.  iii.   139, 
21-27,  145.   55-69. 

Interest 

160.  King,  I.,  Psychology  of  Child  Development.    Chicago,  1903. 

Chapters  xi-xiv.    Full  Bibliography. 

161.  Barnes,  E.,  Studies  in   Education.     Stanford    Univ.,    Cal., 

1896,  i. 


APPENDIX  277 

162.  Sully,  J.,  Studies  of  Childhood.    London,  1896. 

163.  Chamberlain,  A.  F.,  The  Child.    New  York,  1900,  p.  203. 

164.  Taylor,  J.  P.,  Children's  Hopes.    Rep.  of  N.  Y.  State  Sup't 

of  Public  Instruction,  1896,  ii,  987. 

165.  Hancock,  J.  A.,   Mental    Differences   of   School   Children. 

N.  E.  A.  1897,  852. 

166.  Burk,  C.  F.,  Collecting  Instinct.    Peel.  Sem.  1900,  vii,  204. 

167.  Monroe,  W.,  Play  Interests  of  Children.   Trans.  111.  Soc. 

Child-Study,  1899,  iv,  5. 

168.  Monroe,  W.,  Vocational  Interests.    Ed.  1898,  xviii,  259. 

169.  Barnes,  M.  S.,  Development  of  Historic  Sense  in  Children. 

See  201. 

170.  Dawson,  A.  E.,  Children's  Interest  in  the  Bible.    Ped.  Sem. 

1900,  vii,  151. 

171.  O'Shea,  M.  V.,  Interests  in  Childhood.    Child-Study  Mo. 

ii,  266. 

172.  Jegi,  J.  I.,   Children's  Ambitions.    Trans.  111.  Soc.    Child- 

Study,  1898,  iii,  131. 

173.  Barnes,  E.,  Children's  Ideals.    Ped.  Sem.  1900,  vii,  3. 

174.  Luckey,  G.  W.  A.,  Practical  Results  of  Study  of  Children's 

Interests.    N.  E.  A.  1897,  284. 

175.  Taylor,  G.  S.,  Practical  Aspects  of  Interest.  Ped.  Sem.,  1898, 

v,  497. 

176.  Darrah,  E.  M.,  Children's  Ideals.   Pop.  Sci.  Mo.  1898,  liii, 

88. 

CHAPTER  VI 

THE    VISCERAL   ORGANS 

See  Nos.  115,  145,  139,  of  this  Bibliography. 

Metabolism 

180.  Tigerstedt,  R.,  Physiologic  Leipzig,  1902,  i,  122. 

181.  Cammerer,  W.,  Stoffwechsel  des  Kindes.    Tubingen,  1894. 

182.  Uffelmann,  J.,  Manual  of   Domestic    Hygiene.   Jacobi  ed. 

N.  Y.  1891. 

183.  Atwater,  W.  O.,  Annual  Rep.  Storrs  Ag'l  Experiment  Sta. 

Storrs.  Conn,  xv,  1903. 

184.  Atwater,  W.  O.,  Bulletins  of  U.  S.  Dep't  Ag.  Office  of  Ex- 

periment Stations.   Washington,  D.  C,  Nos.  44,  45. 
See  also  139,  145. 


278  APPENDIX 

CHAPTER  VII 

MORTALITY   AND    MORBIDITY 

Mortality 

190.  Hartwell,  E.  M.,  Report  of  Director  of  Physical  Training. 

1894.    School  Document  No.  8.  Boston,  Mass. 

191.  Statistische  Jahrbucher  der  Stadt  Berlin.    Berlin,  xxiv,  134- 

136,  xxviii,  81. 
See  also  139,  357.   Tables  and  References  in  115,  248. 

Morbidity 

195.  Key,  A.,  Pubertatsentwickelungen  und  Krankheitserschein- 

ungen.   Berlin,  1891. 

196.  School-Life  in   Relation   to  Growth   and   Health. 

Pop.  Sci.  Mo.,  1891,  xxxviii,  107. 

197.  Schmid-Monnard,  K.,  Die  chronische    Kranklichkeit  in  un- 

seren  mittleren  und  hoheren  Schulen.    Zeits.  f.  Sch.  ges. 
pfl.    1897,  x,  598,  666;  also  1895,  viii,  657;  1899,  xii,  1. 

198.  Monroe,  W.  S.,  Chorea  among  School-children.    Am.  Phys. 

Ed.  Rev.   1898  iii,  19. 
See  also  137,  and  Review  of  same  by  Smith,  A.  T.,  in 
Education,  1886,  vi,  299,  115,  chap.  iv. 

Fatigue  and  Overpressure 

205.  Binet  et  Henri,  La  Fatigue  intellectuelle.    Paris,    1898. 

Reviewed  by  Jastrow,  J.  Science,  N.  S.,  1898,  viii,  132. 

206.  Mosso,  A.,  Fatigue.    Trans,  by  Drummond,  M.  and  W.  R. 

New  York,  1904. 

207.  Holmes,  M.  E.,  Fatigue  of  a  School-Hour.   Ped.  Sem.,  1893, 

iii,  213. 

208.  Dressier,  F.  B.,  Fatigue.    Ped.  Sem.,  1892,  ii,  103. 

209.  Thorndike,  M.  E.,  Mental  Fatigue  due   to   School   Work. 

Science,  1899,  N.  S.  ix,  862. 

210.  Shaw,  E.  R.,  Fatigue.   N.  E.  A.,  1898,  550. 

211.  Kratz,  H.  E.,  How  may  Fatigue  in  School  Room  be  reduced 

to  a  Minimum  ?    N.  E.  A.,  1899,  1090. 

212.  Eliot,  C.  W.,  Educational  Reform.    New  York,    1898. 

213.  Walker,  F.  A.,  Discussions  in  Education.   New  York,   1899. 

p.  239,  etc. 

214.  Bellei,  G.,  An  Hour's  Work.   Ed.  Rev.  1903,   xxv,  364. 


APPENDIX  279 

215.  Lukens,  H.  F.,  Mental  Fatigue.    Am.  Phys.  Ed.  Rev.  1899, 

iv,  19,  121. 

216.  Baker,  S.,  Fatigue  in  School-Children.    Ed.  Rev.  1898,  xv, 

34. 

217.  Philbrick,  J.  D.,  Overwork  in  School.    Ed.  vi,  330. 

For  other  references,  see  380,  p.  135. 


CHAPTER  VIII 

CONSTITUTION   AND   PERIODS   OE   LIFE 
Constitution 

220.  Beneke,  F.  W.,  Constitution  und  constitutionelles  Kransk- 

sein  des  Menschen.    Marburg,  1881. 

221.  Beneke,  F.  W.,  Die  anatomischen  Grundlagen  der  Constitu- 

tionsanomalien.    Marburg,  1878. 

222.  Beneke,  F.  W.,  Altersdisposition.    Marburg,  1879. 

223.  Martius,    F.,    Pathogenese   innerer    Krankheiten.     Leipzig, 

1903. 

224.  Lincoln,  D.  F.,  Sanity  of  Mind.   New  York,  1900,  p.  18,  etc. 

225.  Oppenheim,  N.,  Development  of  the   Child.     New   York, 

1898,  p.  75,  etc. 

Periods  of  Life 

230.  Chamberlain,  A.  F.,  The  Child.   New  York,  1900,  pp.  50- 

105.   Full  Bib. 

231.  Christopher,  W.  S.,  Three  Crises  in  Child-Life.   Child  Study 

Mo.,  1897,  iii,  324. 

232.  Hartwell,  E.  M.,  Physical  Training.   Am.  Phys.  Ed.  Rev. 

1897,  ii,  133. 

233.  Chrisman,  O.,  Religious  Periods  of  Child-Growth.   Ed.  Rev. 

1899,  xvi,  40. 

234.  Kline,  L.  W.,  Truancy.   Ped.  Sem.    1897,  v,  381. 

See  also  157,  p.  12.   190,  p.  44. 

CHAPTER  IX 

THE   FIRST   THREE   YEARS    OF   THE    CHILD 's    LIFE 

241.  Cotton,  A.  C,  Anatomy,  Physiology,  and  Hygiene  of  In- 
fancy and  Childhood.    Chicago,  1900. 


280  APPENDIX 

242.  Drummond,  W.  B.,  The  Child,   his  Nature  and  Nurture, 

Temple  Primer.    London,  1900. 

243.  Rankin,  F.  H.,  Hygiene  of  Childhood.   New  York,  1890. 

244.  Vierordt,  R.  von,  Physiologie  des  Kindesalter's.    Tubingen, 

1881,  pp.  289,  etc. 
See  also  138,  181,  182. 

Mental  Development 

Hall,  W.,  First  Five  Hundred  Days  of  a  Child's  Life.   Child- 
Study  Mo.   ii. 

241.  Shinn,  M.  W.,  Notes  on  the  Development  of  a  Child.    Berk- 

ley, Cal.,  1899. 

242.  Hall,  G.  S.,  Notes  on  Study  of  Infants.    Ped.  Sem.,  i,  127. 

243.  Hall,  G.  S.,   Some  Aspects  of  Early  Sense  of  Self.    Am. 

Jour.  Psy.    ix,  321. 

244.  Perez,  B.,  First  Three  Years  of  Childhood.    Syracuse,  1889. 

245.  Preyer,  W.,  Mental  Development  of  the  Child.    New  York, 

1893. 

246.  Tracy,  F.,  Psychology  of  Childhood.    Boston,  1894. 

247.  Bryan,  E.  B.,  Nascent  Stages.    Ped.  Sem.,  1899,  vi,  360. 

See  also  160,  162,  230,  chap.  i. 

Mortality  and  Morbidity 

250.  Jones,  H.  R.,  Perils  and  Protection  of  Infant  Life.   Jour. 

Royal  Statistical  Soc.  lvii,  1. 

251.  French,  J.  M.,  Infant  Mortality  and  Environment.    Pop.  Sci. 

Mo.  xxxiv,  221. 

252.  Uffelmann,  J.,  Hygiene.  (German.)  Vienna,  1890,  p.  405. 

See  also  Reports  of  Boards  of  Health  of  Different  States. 


CHAPTER  X 

THE    KINDERGARTEN   PERIOD 

255.  Froebel,   F.,  Education  of  Man.    Trans.    Hailmann.    New 

York,  1887. 

256.  Froebel,  F.,  Pedagogics  of  the  Kindergarten.    New  York, 

1895. 

257.  Pestalozzi,  A.,  Leonard  and  Gertrude.   Trans,  and  abridged 

by  Channing,  E.,  Boston,  1897. 

258.  Peabody,  E.,  Lectures  to  Kindergartners.   Boston,  1897. 


APPENDIX  281 

259.  Burk,  F.  L.  and  C.  F.,  The  Study  of  the  Kindergarten  Pro- 

blem.   San  Francisco,  1899. 

260.  Burk,  F.  L.,  The  Kindergarten  Child  Physically.    N.  E.  A. 

1899,  570. 

261.  Burk,   F.  L.,  Applied  Child-Study  for  Kindergarten  and 

Primary  Grades.    N.  E.  A.    1899,  1051. 

262.  Burnham,  W.  H.,  The  Hygiene  of  the  Kindergarten  Child. 

N.  E.  A.   1904. 

263.  Manton,  W.  F.  P.,  Development  of  Young  Child.    Ed.    1896, 

xvii,  138. 

264.  Sheldon,   W.    E.,    Some  Things   a   Kindergartner    should 

Know.   N.  E.  A.  1891,  554. 

265.  Black,  J.  S.,  Education  of  Physical  Senses.   Ed.    1895,  xvi, 

68. 

266.  Eby,  F.,   Reconstruction  of  the  Kindergarten.    Ped.  Sem. 

1900,  vii,  229. 

267.  Fisher,  L.,  The  Kindergarten.   Rep.  Com.  Education  of  U.  S. 

1903,  i,  689. 

268.  Miller,  S.  M.,  Mind-building  by  Sensory  Development.   Ed. 

1895,  xvi,  218. 

269.  Hall,  G.  S.,  Contents  of  Children's  Minds  on  entering  School. 

Ped.  Sem.   1891,  i,  139. 


CHAPTER  XI 

THE   CHILD   ENTERING   SCHOOL 

{With  some  articles  on  education  in  general.) 

275.  Spencer,  H.,  Education.    Various  Editions  and  Reprints. 

276.  Comenius,  J.  A.,  The  Great  Didactic.  Trans.  Keatinge.   Lon- 

don, 1896. 

277.  Ellis,  A.  C,  Philosophy  of  Education.   Ped.  Sem.   1897,  v, 

159-201. 

278.  Carroll,  C.  F.,  Physical  Conditions  in  Education.   Ed.   1898, 

xviii,  451^459. 

279.  Carroll,  C.  F.,  Childhood  and  Education.    Ed.    1896,  xvii, 

79-87,  149-158. 

280.  Sabin  H.,  Doctor  and  School.    Ed.    1896,  xvii,  129-137. 

281.  Hancock,  J.  A.,  Motor  Ability  of  Children.   Ped.  Sem.   1894, 

iii,  9-29. 


282  APPENDIX 

282.  Hancock,  J.  A.,  Observation  of  School  Children.  Ped.  Sem. 

1901,  viii,  291-340. 

283.  Hancock,   J.  A.,  Mental    Differences   of    School   Children. 

N.E.A.  1897,  851-859. 

284.  Addams,  J.,  Foreign  Children  in  Primary  Grades.   N.E.A. 

1897,  104-112. 

285.  Beard,  R.  O.,  Physiology  of  Childhood.  N.  E.  A.  1902,  720- 

730. 

286.  Halleck,  R.  P.,  Cerebral  Development.    N.  E.  A.  1897,  833- 

841. 

287.  Taylor,  H.  L.,  American  Childhood  from  Medical  Standpoint. 

Pop.  Sci.  Mo.  1892,  xli,  751-732. 

288.  La  Grange,  M.  F.,  Physical   Training  of  Young   Children. 

Pop.  Sci.  Mo.  1889,  xxxiv,  440-454. 

289.  Ranney,  A.  L.,  Care  of  the  Brain.    Pop.  Sci.  Mo.  1886,  xxix, 

386-393. 

290.  O'Shea,  M.  V.,  Values  in  Elementary  Education.    Pop.  Sci. 

Mo.  1896,  xlviii,  675-686. 

291.  Fitz,  G.  W.,  Hygiene   of   Instruction   in   Primary  Schools. 

N.  E.  A.  1898,  544-550. 

292.  Fitz,  G.  W.,  Should  Children  under  Ten  Learn  to  Read  and 

Write  ?    Pop.  Sci.  Mo.  1899,  liv,  382-392. 

293.  Patrick,  G.  T.  W.,  Mental  Waste  and  Economy.    N.  E.  A. 

1893,  725-729. 

294.  Curtis,  H.  S.,  Inhibition.    Ped.  Sem.  1898,  vi,  65-113. 

295.  Hall,   G.    S.,    Children's   Lies.     Ped.    Sem.    1891,    i,  211- 

218. 

296.  Hall,  G.  S. ,  Some  Social  Aspects  of  Education.    Ped.  Sem. 

1902,  ix,  81-91. 

297.  Hawn,  L.  M.,  Children's  Voices.   N.  E.  A.  1896,  790-793. 

298.  Burnham,W.  H.,  Imagination  of  Children.    Ped.  Sem.  1893, 

ii,  204-225. 

299.  Small,  M.  H.,  Suggestibility  of  Children.    Ped.  Sem.  1896, 

iv,  176-220. 

300.  Russell,  E.  H.,  Imitation.    Boston,  1896. 

301.  Haskell,  E.  M.,  Imitation.    Ped.  Sem.  1894,  iii,  30-47. 

302.  Frear,  C,  Imitation.    Ped.  Sem.    1897,  iv,  382-386. 

303.  Bohannon,  E.  W.,  Only  Child  in  a  Family.    Ped.  Sem.  1898, 

v,  475-496. 

304.  Yoder,  A.  H.,  Boyhood  of  Great  Men.    Ped.  Sem.  1894,  iii, 

134-156. 


APPENDIX  283 

305.  Johnson,   G.    E.,  An   Educational   Experiment.   Ped.  Sem. 

1899,  vi,  513-622. 

306.  Search,  P.  W.,  The  Ideal  School.    New  York,  1901,  357  pp. 

307.  Guillet,  C.  A.   Glimpse  at  a  Nature  School.    Ped.  Sem.  1904, 

ii,  91-98. 

308.  MacMillan,  D.  P.,  Diagnosis  of  Capabilities  of  School  Chil- 

dren.  N.  E.  A.  1904,  738-744. 

309.  Bryan,  S.  C,  How  to  tell  Stories  to  Children.    Boston,  1905, 

pp.  260.  Bib. 


CHAPTER  XII 

THE   GIRL  AND   THE   BOY  IN  THE   GRAMMAR   GRADES 

Puberty 
See  115. 

315.  Marro,  A.,  La  Puberte.    Paris,  1902,  536  pp. 

316.  Marro,  A.,  Pubertal  Hygiene.    Am.  Journ.  Sociology,  1900, 

vi,  224-237. 

317.  Engelmann,  G.  J.,  The  American  Girl  of  To-day.    Am.  Phys. 

Ed.  Rev.  1901,  vi,  28-66.   Bib. 

318.  Yoder,  A.  H.,  Differentiation  in  Secondary  Education.    N. 

E.  A.  1903,  785-790. 
See  also  195. 


CHAPTER  XIII 

THE    BOY    AND    THE    GIRL   IN    THE    HIGH    SCHOOL 

325.  Hall,  G.  S.,  Moral  and  Religious  Training,  etc.    Ped.  Sem. 

1891,  i,  196-210. 

326.  Burnham,  W.  H.,  The  Study  of  Adolescence.    Ped.  Sem. 

1891,  i,  196-210. 

327.  Lancaster,  E.  G.,  Psychology  and  Pedagogy  of  Adolescence. 

Ped.  Sem.  1897,  v,  61-128. 

328.  Daniels,  A.  H.,  The  New  Life.  Am.  Journ.  Psy.  1893,  vi, 

61-106.    Bib. 

329.  Thwing,  C.  F.,  The  Best  Thing  College  Does  for  a  Man. 

Forum,  1896,  m,  44-52. 

330.  Tucker,  W.  J.,  Relation  of  High  School  to  Higher  Educa- 

tion.   Ed.  1897,  xviii,  579-587. 


284  APPENDIX 

331.  Duttou,  S.  T.,  Social  Phases  of  Education.   New  York,  1889, 

259  pp. 

332.  Dutton,  S.  T.,  Place  and  Function  of  High  School  Educa- 

tion.  Ed.  1898,  xviii,  587-596. 

333.  Cowell,  H.  C,  School  Ethics.    Pop.  Sci.  Mo.  1895,  xlvi, 

363-366. 

334.  Atkinson,  F.  W.,  Study  of  First  Year  in  High  School  Pupils. 

N.  E.  A.  1898,  903-910. 

335.  Hall,  G.  S.,  Psychic  Arrest  in  Adolescence.   N.  E.  A.  1903, 

811-813. 

336.  Ellis,  A.  C,  Percentage  of  Boys  leaving  High  School.   N. 

E.  A.  1903,  792-798. 

337.  Gay,   G.  C,   Why  Pupils  leave  High  School.    Ed.  1902, 

xxii,  300-307. 

338.  Corson,   H.,   Aims   of  Literary  Study.   New  York,   1901, 

153  pp. 

339.  Harris,  W.  T.,  Psychologic  Foundation  of  Education.   New 

York,  1898,  400. 

340.  Kipling,  R.,   Pharaoh  and  the   Sergeant.   McClure's  Mag. 

1897,  ix,  925-927. 

341.  Book,  W.  F.,  Why  Pupils  drop  out  of  High  School.   Ped. 

Sem.  1904,  xi,  204-232. 

342.  Smith,  F.  W.,  The  High  School  and  the  Adolescent.   Phy- 

sical Relations.   Jour,  of  Pedagogy,  1904,  xvii,  114-131. 

343.  Ternian,   L.    M.,  Study  of   Leadership.    Ped.   Sem.  1904, 

xi,  413-461. 

344.  Book,  W.  F.,  The  High  School  Teacher  seen  from  Pupil's 

Point  of  View.   Ped.  Sem.  1905,  xii,  239-288. 

345.  Coe,  G.  H.,  The  Spiritual  Life.    New  York,  1900,  pp.  279. 

346.  Starbuck,  E.  D.,  The  Psychology  of  Religion.   New  York, 

1900.  pp.420. 


CHAPTER  XIV 

THE   PLACE   OF   PLAY   IN  EDUCATION 

350.  Groos,  K.,  Die  Spiele  der  Menschen.   Jena,  1899,  pp.  538. 

351.  Groos,  K.,  Plays  of  Man. 

352.  Groos,  K.,  The  Play  of  Animals.   New  York,  1898,  pp.  341. 

353.  Nitsch,  A.,  Spielbuch  fur  Madchen  von  6-16  Jahren.   Berlin, 

1899,  pp.  291. 


APPENDIX  285 

354.  Gulick,  L.  H.,  Some  Psychical  Aspects  of  Muscular  Exer- 

cise.   Pop.  Sci.  Mo.  liii,  793-805. 

355.  Gulick,  L.  H.,   Psychological,   Pedagogical,  and  Religious 

Aspects  of  Group  Games.    Ped.  Sem.  vi,  135-151,  1899. 

356.  Johnson,  G.  E.,  Children's  Games  as  Means  for  avoiding 

Overpressure.    Am.  Phys.  Ed.  Rev.  1901,  vi,  160-169. 

357.  Johnson,  G.  E.,  Play  in  Physical  Education.   N.  E.  A.    1898. 

948-954.   Also  in  Am.  Phys.  Ed.  Rev.  1898,  iii,  179- 
187. 

358.  Johnson,  G.  E.,  Education  by  Plays  and  Games.    Ped.  Sem. 

1894,  iii,  97-133.   Bib. 

359.  Hall,  G.  S.,  Play  and  Work.    N.  E.  A.  1901,  519-523. 

360.  Crosswell,  F.  R.,  Amusements  of  Worcester  School  Chil- 

dren.   Ped.  Sem.  1899,  vi,  314-371. 

361.  Hughes,  J.  L.,  Educational  Value  of  Play.    Ed.  Rev.  1894, 

viii,  327-336. 

362.  Felker,  A.  M.,  Play  in  Child's  Experience.   N.  E.  A.  1898, 

624-640. 

363.  Fitz,  G.  W.,  Play  as  a  Factor  in  Development.   Am.  Phys. 

Ed.  Rev.  1897,  ii,  209-215. 

364.  LaGrange,  F.,  Free  Play  in  Education.    Pop.  Sci.  Mo.  1893, 

xlii,  813-820. 

365.  O'Shea,  M.  V.,  Work  and  Play  in  Youth.   N.  E.  A.  1901, 

513-518. 

366.  Monroe,  W.,  Play  Interests.    N.  E.  A.  1899,  1084-1090. 

367.  Page,  F.  S.,  Teaching  Arithmetic  by  Playing  Store.    School 

Journ.  lxvii,  lxviii,  521-522. 

368.  Parsons,  B.  R.,  Physical  Training  by  Play.    School  Journ. 

lxix,  520-522. 

369.  O'Grady,  C.  G.,  Elements  in  Work  and  Play.   N.  E.  A. 

1901,  527-532. 

370.  Powe,  C.  M.,  Work  and  Play.   N.  E.  A.  1901,  527-532. 

371.  Putnam,  A.  H.,  Work  and  Play  in  Kindergarten.    N.  E.  A. 

1901,  502-507. 

372.  Lee,  J.,  Education  in  Play-grounds.    Ed.  Rev.   xxii,  449-471, 

1901. 

373.  Bradley,  J.  E.,  Relation   of   Play   to   Character.    Ed.   xix, 

406-413. 

374.  Bushnell,  H.,  Work  and  Play.  New  York,  1864.  (Excellent.) 
For  full  Bibliography  of  Subject,  see  380,  pp.  46-49. 


286  APPENDIX 

CHAPTER  XV 

PHYSICAL   TRAINING  —  GYMNASTICS 

380.  McCnrdy,  J.  H.,  Bibliography  of  Physical  Training.    Spring- 

field,   1905. 

381.  Gulick,   L.  H.,  Physical    Education.    Philadelphia,    1904, 

369  p. 

382.  Treves,  F.,  Physical  Education.   Phil.   1892,  115  pp. 

383.  Sargent,  D.  A.,  Health,  Strength,  and  Power.    Boston,   1904. 

384.  Hartwell,  E.  M.,  Physical  Training.   Report  U.  S.  Com.  of. 

Ed.  i,  487-587,  1897-'98. 

385.  Hartwell,  E.  M.    Physical   Training.   Am.  Phys.    Ed.  Rev. 

ii,  133-151,  1897. 

386.  Hartwell.  E.  M.,  Physical  Education  as  Educational  Disci- 

pline.  A.  A.  A.  P.  E.  88-100,  1894. 

387.  Hartwell,  E.  M.,  Physical  Training  at  Elmira  Reformatory. 

Phys.  Ed.  v,  48. 

388.  Gulick,  L.  H.,  Problem  of  Physical  Training  in  Modern  City. 

Am.  Phys.  Ed.  Rev.  viii,  27-35,  1903. 

389.  Gulick,  L.,  H.  Interest  in  relation  to  Physical  Education.   Am. 

Phys.  Ed.  Rev.  vii,  57-65,  1902. 

390.  Lincoln,  D.  F.,  Motor   Element  in  Education.    Am.  Phys. 

Ed.  Rev.  ii,  65-72,  1897. 

391.  Phillips,  P.  C,  Hygienic,  Corrective,  and  Educational  Aim 

in   Exercise  for  College   Students.    Am.  Phys.  Ed.  Rev. 
1900,  v,  67-73. 

392.  Sargent,  D.  A.,  Place  for  Physical  Training.    Am.  Phys.  Ed. 

Rev.  1901,  vi,  110-121. 

393.  Wey,  H.  D.,  Physical  Training  of  Criminals.    A.  A.  A.  P.  E. 

1903,  34-45;  1888,  17-35,  New  York. 

394.  Wey,  H.  D.,  Year  Books  of  Elmira  Reformatory.    Elmira 

N.  Y.,  1892,  '93,  '95,  '97. 

395.  Physical  Training  in  Educational  Curriculum.    Discussion. 

Am.  Phys.  Ed.  Rev.  1899,  iv,  217-224. 

396.  Balliet,  T.  M.,  Value   of  Motor  Education.   Journ.  of  Ed. 

1898,  xlviii,  317. 

397.  Ballin,  H.,  Symmetry  in  Education,  Mind,  and  Body.    1896, 

iii,  1-4,  65-68. 

398.  Ballin,  H.,  Physical  Training.    N.  E.  A.    1901,  765-769. 

399.  Bissell,  M.  T.,  Athletics  for  City  Girls.   Pop.  Sci.  Mo.   1894, 

xlvi,  145-153. 


APPENDIX  287 

400.  Chanuing,  W.,  Physical  Training  in  Childhood.   Ed.  Rev. 

1895,  x,  262-265. 

401.  Dutton,  S.  T.,  Time  for  Physical  Training.    Am.  Phys.  Ed. 

Rev.  1901,  vi,  204-211. 

402.  Ehler,  G.  W.,  Principles    underlying  Physical   Education. 

Am.  Phys.  Ed.  Rev.  1902,  vii,  66-79.    Bib. 

403.  Hain,  F.  H.,  Physical  Education.   Ed.  xxiv,  356. 

404.  Hall,  G.  S.,  Relations  between  Physical  and  Mental  Train- 

ing.  A.  A.  A.  P.  E.  1894,  30-37. 

405.  Hall,  G.  S.,  Christianity  and  Physical  Training.    Ped.  Sem. 

1902,  ix,  374-377. 

406.  Graves,   A.    P.,    Physical    Education   in   Primary   Schools. 

Contemp.  Rev.  1904,  lxxxv,  888-898. 

407.  Kellor,    F.  A.,  Psychological  Basis  for  Physical  Culture. 

Ed.  1898,  xix,  100-104. 

408.  Krohn,  W.  O.,  Physical   Education   in   Brain-Building.   N. 

E.  A.  1903,  818-823. 

409.  Krohn,  W.  O.,  Development  of  Will  through  Physical  Train- 

ing.  N.  E.  A.  1897,  873-880. 

410.  Lndlam,  M.  H.,  Physical  Training  in  High  School.    N.  E.  A. 

1904,  827-832. 

411.  Lyttle,  E.  W.,  Place  of  Physical  Education  in  Curriculum. 

N.  E.  A.  1903,  823-828. 

412.  Mosso,  A.,  Physical  Education  of  Young.    Rep.  Com.  of  Ed. 

of  U.  S.  1897-98,  ii,  1715. 

413.  O'Shea,  M.  V.,  Physical  Training  and  Mental  Activity.    Am. 

Phys.  Ed.  Rev.    ix,  28-35. 

414.  Patrick,  G.  T.  W.,  Psychology  of  Foot-Ball.  Am.  Journ.  Psy. 

1903,  xiv,  375. 

415.  Pierce,  J.  M.,  Psychological  Aspects  of  Physical  Education. 

Am.  Phys.  Ed.  Rev.    1898.   iii,  30-37. 

416.  Porter,  H.,  Philosophy  of  Courage.    Century.    1888.    xxxvi, 

246-254. 

417.  Richards,  E.  L.,  Physical  Element  in  Education.   Pop.  Sci. 

Mo.    1895.   xlvii,  471^77. 

418.  Scripture,  E.  W.,  Psychological  Aspects  of  Physical  Educa- 

tion.  Am.  Phys.  Ed.  Rev.  1901,  vi,  298,  299. 

419.  Simpson,  F.  T.,  Need  of  Physical  Education  in  our  Public 

Schools.   Am.  Phys.  Ed.  Rev.  1901,  vi,  135-142. 

420.  Stecker,  W.  H.,  Physical  Training  in  Primary  and  Grammar 


288  APPENDIX 

421.  Taylor,  H.  L.,  Exercise  and  Vigor.   Am.  Phys.  Ed.  Rev. 

1898,  iii,  249-257. 

422.  Truslow,  W.,  Exercise  during  Adolescence.    Am.  Phys.  Ed. 

Rev.  1898,  iii,  120.   Bib. 

423.  Wittich,  G.,  Educational  Gymnastics  for  Pupils  of  Six  to 

Nine.    Mind  and  Body,  1896,  iii,  105,  106,  127-131. 

424.  Worcester,  A.,  Gymnastics.    Pop.  Sci.  Mo.   1883,  xxiii,  77- 

85. 

For  special  Bibliography  of  Gymnastics,  see  380,  pp. 
161-178,  349-362. 


CHAPTER  XVI 

MANUAL   TRAINING 

430.  Woodward,  C.  M.,  Manual  Training  in  Education.  New 

York,  1902,  307  pp. 

431.  Report  of  Conference  on  Manual  Training.    Boston,  1891, 

182  pp. 

432.  Baylies,  A.,  Industrial  Training  in  Rural  Schools.   N.  E.  A. 

1903,  185-193. 

433.  Baylies,  A.,  Manual  Training  in  Country  Schools.    N.  E  A. 

1904,  623-627. 

434.  Booth,  E.  R.,   Philosophy  of  Manual  Training.    N.  E.  A. 

1895,  720-731. 

435.  Bradley,  J.  E.,  Manual  Training  in  Grammar  Grades.   N. 

E.  A.  1890,  834-842. 

436.  Calkins,  N.  A.,  Manual  Training  in  Primary  Classes.   N. 

E.  A.  1890,  828-834. 

437.  Carroll,  C.  F.,  Manual  Training  and  the  Course  of  Study. 

N.  E.  A.  1896,  778-786.  1901. 

438.  Carroll,  C.  F.,  Manual  Training.    Ed.  1901,  xxii,  23-27. 

439.  Crawford,  T.  O.,  Manual  Training  in  Grammar  School.   N. 

E.  A.  1888,  570-582. 

440.  Eby,  F.,  Value  of  Manual  Training  Education.    Ed.    1898, 

xviii,  491-495. 

441.  Gilbert,  C.  B.,  Manual  Training.    Ed.  1897,  xviii,  194-204. 

442.  Hailmann,  W.  N.,  Manual  Training  in  Elementary  School. 

N.  E.  A.  1890,  842-850. 

443.  Harris,  W.  T.,  Intellectual  Value  of  Tool- Work.   N.  E.  A. 

1889,  92-98. 


APPENDIX  289 

444.  Harris,  W.  T.,  Psychology  of  Manual  Training.   Ed.    1889, 

ix,  571-586,  656-664. 

445.  Henderson,  C.  H.,  Spirit  of  Manual  Training.   Pop.  Sci.  Mo. 

1889,  xxxv,  433-447. 

446.  Henderson,  C.  H.,  Philosophy  of  Manual  Training.    Pop. 

Sci.  Mo.   1898,  liii,  145-159,  772-788.   Cf.  xlvi,  48-62, 
799-814. 

447.  James,  H.  M.,   Manual   Training   in   Elementary    Schools. 

N.  E.  A.  1890,  850-858. 

448.  Kenyon,  W.  J.,  Reasons  for  Manual  Training.    Ed.   xxv, 

65. 

449.  Keyes,  C.  H.,  Industrial  (and  Manual)  Training.     N.  E.  A. 

1895,  731-741. 

450.  Kock,  H.  E.,  Manual  Training  in  Schools  of  Germany.    Ed. 

xxiii,  193. 

451.  Kropotkin,  P.,  Manual   Training  and  Brain   Work.    Nine- 

teenth Century,  1890,  xxvii,  456-475. 

452.  Lenfest,  B.  A.,  High  School  Courses  in  Manual  Training. 

N.  E.  A.  1900,  495-501. 

453.  Lubbock,  J.,  Manual  Training.    Pop.   Sci.   Mo.    1887,  xxx, 

327-336. 

454.  Magnus,  P.,  Manual  Training  in  Relation  to  Health.    Ed. 

Rev.  iii,  78-86. 

455.  Magnus,  P.,  Manual  Training  in  Public  Schools.    Pop.  Sci. 

Mo.  1887,  xxxi,  493-502. 

456.  Richards,  C.  R.,  Manual  Training;  a  Subject  or  a  Method  of 

Instruction.    Ed.  Rev.  1904,  xxvii,  369-374. 

457.  Richards,  E.  H.,  Domestic  Science  for  Girls.    N.  E.  A.  1898, 

766-773. 

458.  Todd,  J.  L.,  Manual  Training  Methods.    N.  E.  A.  1894, 

886-891. 

459.  Vrooman,  G.,  Manual  Training  for  Women.    Arena,  1895, 

xiv,  308-316.    Bib. 

460.  Walker,  F.  A.,  Manual  Training  in  Public  Schools.    N.  E.  A. 

1887,  196-205. 

461.  Washington,   B.   T.,    Moral    Value   of   Manual   Training. 

Everybody's  Mag.  viii,  145,  286,  vii,  297. 

462.  Woodward,   C.   M.,   Manual   Training  in   Education.    Ed. 

1884,  iv,  228-243;  1885,  v,  614-626. 

463.  Woodward,  C.  M.,  Fruits  of  Manual  Training.    Pop.  Sci. 

Mo.  1884,  xxv,  347-357. 


290  APPENDIX 

464.  Woodward,  C.  M.,  Results  of  St.  Louis  Manual  Training 

School.   N.  E.  A.  1889,  73-91. 
485.  Woodward,    C.  M.,  Function  of  Public  School.    N.  E.  A. 
1887,  212-224. 

For  farther  references  see  Monroe,  W.,  Bibliography  of 
Education,  pp.  105-109. 

School  Hygiene 

505.  Burnham,  W.  H.,  Bibliography  of  School  Hygiene.   N.  E.  A. 

1898,  505-523. 

506.  Biirgerstein  und  Netolitzky.    Handbuch  der  Schulhygiene. 

2d  ed.   Jena,  1902,  997  p.    Full  bibliographies   and  In- 
dex.   A  most  excellent  work. 

507.  Eulenberg  und  Bach.    Schulgesundheitslehre.   Berlin. 

508.  Kotelmann,  L.,  School  Hygiene.    Trans.    Bergstrom.   Syra- 

cuse, 1899. 

509.  Burnham,  W.  H.,  School  Hygiene.   Ped.  Sem.    1892,  ii,  9- 

71. 

510.  Christian,  O.,  Hearing  of  Children.    Ped.  Sem.   1892,  ii, 

397^41. 

511.  Cohn,  H.,   Eyes  and  School-Books.  Pop.  Sci.   Mo.   1881, 

xix,  54^59. 

512.  Groozman,  M.  P.  E.,  School  Hygiene.   Am.  Phys.  Ed.  Rev. 

vii,  86-97. 

513.  Hartwell,  E.  M.,  Health  of  School-Girls.   Am.  Phys.  Ed. 

Rev.  vii,  140. 

514.  Kellogg,   J.  H.,   Physical   Deterioration  and   School-Life. 

N.  E.  A.  1896,  899-911. 

515.  Kingsley,  C,  Health  and  Education.    New  York,  1884. 

516.  Lincoln,  D.  F.,   Hygiene  of  Public  Schools  in  Massachu- 

setts.  Forty-second  Annual  Report   of  State  Board  of 
Education,  1877,  1878. 

517.  Lincoln,  D.  F.,  Essentials  of  School  Hygiene.   Trans.   111. 

Soc.  for  Child-Study,  1895,  i,  3,  65-66. 

518.  Lincoln,  D.  F.,  School  and  Industrial  Hygiene.   Philadelphia, 

1880. 

519.  Lincoln,  D.  F.,  Ventilation  and  Heating  of  Schools.   N.  E.  A. 

1895,  934-943. 

For  other  important  works  see  author's  name  in  505. 

520.  Lovett,  R.  W.,  Health  of  School  Girls.    Am.  Phys.  Ed.  Rev. 

1902,  vii,  135-143. 


APPENDIX  291 

521.  Meyer,  B.,  The  Child,  Physically  and  Mentally.   Trans,  by 

Salomon.    New  York,  1893. 

522.  Rankin,  F.  H.,  Hygiene  of  Childhood.    New  York,  1890. 

523.  Newsbolme,  A.,  School  Hygiene.    Boston,  1894. 

524.  Swift,  E.  J.,  Eye-Defects  in  Students  and  Children.    Ped. 

Sem.  1897,  v,  202-270. 

525.  Young,    Chapter  on   School   Hygiene   in   Seventh   Annual 

Report  of  Board  of  Health  of  State  of  Maine.   A  most 
admirable  report,  which  should  be  reprinted. 
See  also  Bibliography  in  380,  p.  151. 

The  following  bibliographies  will  be  found  very  useful : 

Bibliography  of  Child-Study.  Prepared  annually  by  Dr.  Louis 
N.  Wilson,  Librarian  of  Clark  University.  Very  complete,  in- 
cluding foreign  as  well  as  American  publications,  and  with  classi- 
fied index. 

Annual,  classified  list  of  English  and  American  books  and 
articles  on  Education  in  volumes  of  Educational  Review. 

Library  Bulletin  of  Columbia  University.  No.  2.  Books  on 
Education.   New  York,  1901.   435  p. 

Bibliography  of  Education.  By  W.  S.  Munroe.  New  York, 
1897.   3000  books  and  pamphlets. 

See  index  volume  of  Reports  of  National  Teachers'  Association 
and  of  National  Educational  Association.    1857-1897. 

See  also  Reference  Lists  in  116,  126,  230,  380. 

506  has  full  lists  of  references  on  all  subjects.  Very  complete 
for  German  literature. 


INDEX 


Adler,  Felix,  manual  training,  237. 

Adolescence,  179. 

Anderson,  W.  G.,  167.    See  Bib.  No. 

127. 
Athletes,  power  of,  208, 223. 
Athletics,  181,  216. 
Atwater,  W.  D.,  food  required  at 

different  ages,  85. 

Bailey,  H.  T.,  drawing,  144. 

Baxter,  J.  H.,  professions  and  health, 
9 ;  stature  and  health,  160. 

Beard,  G.  M.,  nervousness,  10. 

Brain,  31,  45;  growth  of,  71;  and 
hand,  44,  228. 

Bryan,  W.  L.,  motor  ability,  71. 

Bryant,  Sara  Cone,  stories,  150. 

Burgerstein,  L.,  mortality  of  girls, 
164. 

Burk,  F.  L.,  growth,  vii ;  kindergar- 
ten, 135 ;  plays,  205. 

Character,  development  of,  194. 

Childhood,  199. 

Child-study,  importance  of,  79,  107, 
114. 

Christopher,  "W.  S.,  "fatigue  year," 
140. 

Circulation,  82. 

City,  6. 

Clouston,  T.  S.,  incompletely  devel- 
oped organs,  60. 

Constitution,  104. 

Consumption,  7,  99, 165. 

Cooking,  233. 

Cortex,  32. 

Crichton-Browne,  J.,  consumption  in 
females,  100. 

Digestive  system,  81,  85. 
Donaldson,  H.  H.,  growth  of  brain, 
72, 145. 

Education  and  efficiency,  l,  15,  38, 
53,  87,  136,  194,  207,  223,  231,  250. 


Ellis,  Havelock,  health  of  women,  93. 

Embryology,  49. 

Emotions,   importance  of,  46,  148, 

185. 
Engelmann,  G.  J.,  health  of  girls, 

174. 

Examinations,  171, 190. 

Expression  through  manual  train- 
ing, 238. 

Farm  life,  4, 145,  246. 

Gardens,  school,  202. 

Gilbert,  J.  A.,  motor  ability,  71 ;  fa- 
tigue, 71 ;  lung  capacity  and  mental 
ability,  84. 

Growth,  expensive,  86, 158 ;  import- 
ance of,  243 ;  stages  of,  56 ;  success- 
ive and  by  parts,  74. 

Gulick,  L.  H.,  plays  and  games,  203. 

Gymnastics,  218. 

Hall,  G.  S.,  farm  training,  5 ;  adoles- 
cence, 108;  children's  minds,  136; 
feelings,  148. 

Hall,  W.  S.,  girths,  263. 

Hartwell,  E.  M.,  mortality  in  Boston, 
93,  134,  269. 

Health  and  efficiency,  16, 162,  242. 

Heart,  82, 179, 182. 

Height,  65 ;  boys,  263 ;  girls,  266. 

Hertel,  A.,  morbidity,  95, 100. 

Hitchcock,  Edward,  weight  of  adults, 
64 ;  height  of  adults,  65.  See  also 
263. 

Holt,  L.  E.,  infancy,  122.  See  also 
263. 

Hygiene,  preventive  and  curative, 
109,  128,  207,  251. 

Imagination,  77,  204. 
Infancy,  115. 
Interest,  60,  75, 142. 

Key,  A.,  morbidity,  96, 100,  270. 


294 


INDEX 


Kidneys,  16,  26,  265,  268. 
Kindergarten,  129. 
Kipling,  Rudyard,  149, 196. 

Laboratory,  230. 

Lagrange,   Ferdinand,  gymnastics, 

221. 
Literature,  teaching  of,  191. 
Liver,  81. 

Locke,  John,  education,  214. 
Lungs,  83, 90,  167. 

Manual  training,  228. 

Measurements,  physical,  226. 

Metabolism,  84. 

Metamorphosis,  preparation  for, 
142,  163,  175,  187. 

Meynert's  projection  area,  34. 

Morals,  210 ;  of  child,  148 ;  of  adoles- 
cent, 186. 

Morbidity,  95;  during  infancy,  126; 
of  child,  134,  141;  pubertal,  163; 
adolescent,  181. 

Mortality,  92 ;  during  infancy,  125 ; 
during  childhood,  134, 141. 

Muscles,  fundamental  and  access- 
ory, 29,  40. 

Muscular  system,  growth  of,  69 ;  and 
vital  organs,  26,  43,  198,  207 ;  and 
brain,  26,  31,  39,  45,  137,  201,  208. 

Nature  and  education,  19, 51,  58, 243. 
Nervous  system  and  muscles,  30, 39, 

137,  201. 
Nervous  weakness,  10, 128 ;  preven- 

tion  of,  40, 45. 


Periods  of  life,  108. 

Periods,  critical,  140, 143, 160, 170,187. 

Physical  training,  168, 181, 198. 

Plato,  truth  and  beauty,  189. 

Play,  135, 203. 

Precocity,  58. 

Proportions  of  body,  153,  157,  160, 

181. 
Puberty,  156, 199. 

Quetelet,  L.  A.  J.,  puberty,  158.  See 
also  263. 

Religion,  186. 

Schmid-Monnard,  C,  morbidity,  97, 
100,  141,  164;  loss  of  weight  at 
school,  151. 

Sedentary  life,  10. 

Standish,  Myles,  near-sightedness  in 
children,  142. 

Story  value  of,  150. 

Symmetry,  19,  38, 105. 

Taylor,  J.  P.,  children's  hopes,  142. 

Uffelmann,  J.,  food  of  infant,  119; 
infant  mortality,  125, 127. 

Walker,  F.  A.,  manual  training,  231. 
Weight,  64;  of  boys,  263;  of  girls, 

266. 
Wey,  H.  D.,  manual  training,  229. 
Will,  training  of,  202,  253. 
Wright,   Carroll     D.,     growth    of 

cities,  6. 


CAMBRIDGE  .  MASSACHUSETTS 

U  .  S  .   A 


y 


This  book  i 

j 

s  DUE  on  the  last  date  stamped  below 

OCT  1 4.  1942 

JUL  1  5   193^ 
J     ! 

MAR  1  3  1939 

OCT  |  6  1950 

JUL  3  0  193f 

**"«*■■ 

• 

JUL  2  S   l932 

OCT  8     1946 

*1CT  1  1  193' 

JAJV  o  °  1933 

OCT  3      1941 

JUL  -1  0  1936 

APR  9        -;_•-] 
-"•             <**  1343 

OCT  6     f93e 

*•¥ 

f!$*  : 

8  «34S 
JUL  29** 

JUL  1 4  193?, 

JAN     9   1947 

Forra  L-9-10m-5,'28 

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